Real-time recording/reproduction on an information recording medium including a defective region

ABSTRACT

In an information recording medium for recording and reproducing data thereon on a sector-by-sector basis, the recorded data being managed as at least one file by using a file structure, the file structure includes unused space management information for identifying a used region and an unused region. At least one defective region is registered as an unused region in the unused space management information, the at least one defective region being a region on the information recording medium which is incapable of proper reproduction of the recorded data.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a method for recording/reproducinginformation on an information recording medium. In particular, thepresent invention relates to a technique for achieving real-timerecording/reproduction of video and/or audio data on an informationrecording medium including a defective region.

2. Description of the Related Art

Optical disks are representative of information recording media having asector structure. The trend for higher density and larger capacity inrecent years has underlined the importance of the reliability of suchdisks. If a disk includes a sector in which information cannot beproperly recorded or reproduced, such a sector is typically registeredas a “defective sector” by an optical disk apparatus so that thedefective sector will not be used thereafter, and another sector issubstituted for that defective sector. This ensures reliability of thedisk. Such a defect management function performed by optical diskapparatuses is described in the International Standards OrganizationISO/IEC10090 (hereinafter referred to as the “ISO standards”) for 90 mmoptical disks.

FIG. 25 is a diagram illustrating the structure of a general diskmedium.

The disk medium 1 includes a number of concentric or spiral tracks 2formed thereon, each track 2 including a number of subdivisions whichare referred to as sectors 3. The disk includes two types of regions:disk information areas 4 and a data recording area 5. The diskinformation areas 4, which store parameters and the like that arenecessary for making access to the disk, are positioned at the innermostperiphery and the outermost periphery of the disk medium 1.

The disk information areas 4 may also be referred to as lead-in andlead-out areas, respectively. The recording/reproduction of data isperformed for the data recording area 5. Every sector in the datarecording area 5 receives an absolute address which is referred to as aphysical sector number (hereinafter UPSN).

FIG. 26 illustrates the data structure (denoted as 2600) of aconventional disk medium. The data structure 2600 illustrates a casewhere, as shown in FIG. 27, the disk medium includes a directory DIR1under a directory ROOT, and the directory DIR1 includes two files FILE1and FILE2.

The date structure 2600 includes unused space management information2601, a data structure 2602 representing the logical space on the diskmedium 1, a data structure 2603 representing the physical space on thedisk medium 1, and defect management information 2604. The physicalspace data structure 2603 includes a control data area 2606, defectmanagement information 2606, and an unused spare area 2607, which are tobe interpreted only by a reproduction apparatus (e.g., an optical diskdrive) for physically reproducing data on the disk medium 1 and whichare inaccessible to a control apparatus (e.g., a personal computer).Note that these areas are not included in the logical space datastructure 2602.

As shown in FIG. 26, the logical space is divided into a volumestructure 2608 for storing logical volume structure information and aregion (partition space) 2609 for storing the file structure and filedata in the logical volume space. The respective divisions of thelogical space are managed based on their consecutive addresses which arereferred to as logical sector number (hereinafter “LSN”).

Hereinafter, the respective contents which are stored in the partitionspace 2609 will be described.

The unused space management information 2601 is a bit map whichrepresents whether each sector within the partition space 2609 is usedor not. Each bit on the bit map corresponds to a sector. The bit value“1” indicates “used”, whereas the bit value “0” indicates “unused”. Inthe example shown in FIG. 26, the unused space management information2610 and the ROOT directory file structure 2611 always have the “0” bitvalue on the bit map, whereas all the other regions, except for anunused region 2612, have the “1 bit value on the bit map.

The ROOT directory file structure 2611 includes a ROOT directory file(not shown in the figure) for storing information concerning the filesand/or directories which are under the ROOT directory, and a ROOT. ICB(not shown in the figure) for specifying a position at which the ROOTdirectory file is recorded.

A DIR1 file entry 2613 includes the location information of a DIR1directory file 2614. The DIR1 directory file 2614 stores informationconcerning the directories and files which are in the directory DIR1.

The DIR1 directory file 2614 includes information concerning the filesFILE1 and FILE2 stored in the directory DIR1, and the locationinformation of a FILE1 file entry 2615 and a FILE2 file entry 2616.

The FILE1 file entry 2615 and the FILE2 file entry 2616 include thelocation information of the file data of the files FILE1 and FILE2,respectively, and the like.

The FILE1 extent 2617 contains the file data of the file FILE1. TheFILE2 extent 2618 contains the file data of the file FILE2.

Next, the physical space data structure 2603 will be described.

The physical space on the disk is generally divided into a diskinformation area 2619 and a data recording area 2620. The diskinformation area 2619 stores control information which is referred toonly by a reproduction apparatus (e.g., an optical disk drive) forphysically reproducing data on the disk medium 1 and is inaccessible toa control apparatus (e.g., a personal computer).

The disk information area 2619 is generally divided into a control dataarea 2605 and defect management information 2606. The control data area2605 stores control information such as disk identification informationand copyright protection information. The defect management information2606 stores information concerning any defects on the disk. The defectmanagement information 2606 will be described later in detail.

The data recording area 2620 includes a user area 2621 for recordingfile structures and file data, and a spare area 2622 for complementingany defective regions which may be present in the user area. A defectiveregion 2623 included within the user area 2621 can be substituted for bya spare region 2624 in the spare area 2622. Similarly, a defectiveregion 2625 included within the user area 2621 can be substituted for bya spare region 2626 in the spare area 2622.

Next, the relationship between the logical space 2602 and the physicalspace 2603 will be described. If no defective regions are present in thephysical space 2603 on the disk, the user area 2621 corresponds to thelogical space 2602 for each group. In the example illustrated in FIG.26, it will be seen that the volume structure 2608, the unused spacemanagement information 2610, the ROOT directory file structure 2611, theDIR1 file entry 2613, the DIR1 directory file 2614, the FILE1 file entry2615, and the FILE2 file entry 2616 in the logical space 2602 correspondto their respective counterparts in the physical space 2603. However, ifthe physical space 2603 includes any defective regions (e.g., 2623 and2625), such defective regions (2623 and 2625) can be substituted for byspare regions (e.g., 2624 and 2626) within the spare area 2622. Forexample, the FILE1 extent region 2617 in the physical space 2603includes the defective region 2623 in the example illustrated in FIG.26. Since the defective region 2623 cannot be used, the defective region2623 is substituted for by the spare region 2624, thereby providing anerror-free logical space 2602. As a result, the FILE1 extent 2617 isallocated an one continuous space within the logical space 2602. Thesame applies to the defective region 2625 in the FILE2 extent 2618within the physical space 2603.

The defective regions (e.g., 2623 and 2625) and the spare regions (e.g.,2624 and 2626) are managed by the defect management information 2606within the disk information area 2619. A disk definition structure 2627of the defect management information 2604 stores information such as adefect management method for the disk and disk attributes. A primarydefect list (hereinafter “PDL”) 2628 usually stores the locationinformation of defective regions which are detected during aninitialization process performed by a disk manufacturer. Any defectiveregions which are detected during the use by a user are handled by asecondary defect list (hereinafter “SDL”) 2632. The SDL 2632 includes asecondary defect list header 2629 for storing the number of updates madeto the defect management information 2606, a secondary defect listregistration number 2630 for indicating the number of pairs of defectiveregions and corresponding spare regions that are registered in the list(“2” is set in the example illustrated in FIG. 26), and a list 2631 ofthe PSNs of the defective regions and the PSNs of their correspondingspare regions as arranged in the ascending order of the PSNs of thedefective regions. Thus, a recording/reproduction apparatus for the diskreads the defect management information 2604 during a start-up processwhich is performed upon insertion of the disk, and may access the spareregions, instead of any defective regions, in a subsequent disk access.

Next, a conventional method for performing a recording process for thedisk will be described with reference to a flowchart shown in FIG. 28.The recording process can be generally divided into two portions: a filedata recording process from Steps 2301 to 2309 and a file structurerecording process from Steps 2310 to 2317.

(1) File Data Recording Process

A disk recording apparatus (not shown in the figure) first performs aregion allocation Stop 2301 for selecting or allocating a location, fromwithin the unused region on the disk, for recording a file.Specifically, a region for recording a file is selected from among theunused regions (which are indicated by the “0” bit value on theaforementioned bit map) in the unused space management information 2601(FIG. 26). Thus, Step 2301 determines the location of a file to berecorded on the disk. It is assumed that the unused space managementinformation 2601 has previously been read from the disk medium.

Next, at Step 2302, the disk recording apparatus begins recording filedata at the recording location which was determined at Step 2301. Whenperforming an actual writing to the disk, an error determination step2303 checks whether or not a physical address (i.e., locationidentification information recorded in the form of convexities andconcavities on the disk) has been read properly. This check is performedbecause a sector address must be read before writing data in any givensector. If the sector address which has been read includes an error, therecording cannot occur properly because of inability to identify theright location. If the error determination step 2303 determines that anaddress read error has occurred, the region associated with the error isdefined as a defective region, and an replacement step 2308 isperformed.

Next, a verification step 2304 is performed for verifying whether or nota write operation was successfully performed. Specifically, theconfirmation of a successful write operation at the verification step2304 involves reading data from the region for which the write operationwas performed, comparing the read data against the data which wasintended to be written, calculations associated with error correctioncodes, and the like.

After the verification step 2304, it is determined at Step 2305 whetheror not the data includes an error. If the data includes an error, theregion associated with the error is defined as a defective region, andan replacement step 2309 is performed.

If the error determination step 2305 determines no error, it isdetermined at Step 2306 whether or not all of the data to be recordedhas been recorded. If less than all of the data to be recorded has beenrecorded, a next recording address is set at Step 2307, followed by adata write operation 2302 and a verification step 2304.

The above steps are repeated until all the data to be recorded have beenrecorded without errors. Thereafter, a file structure recording processis performed.

Note that the replacement steps 2308 and 2309 each involve a process forreplacing a defective region with a spare area (e.g., 2622) shown inFIG. 26.

FIG. 29 is a flowchart showing the replacement operation to be performedat the replacement step 2308 or 2309 during recording. At Step 2401, aspare region 2624 or 2626 for substituting for a defective region 2623or 2625 is allocated from within the spare area 2622 shown in FIG. 26.As a result, at Step 2402, the data which would otherwise have beenrecorded in the defective region 2623 or 2625 is written in the spareregion 2624 or 2626. Thereafter, an error determination step 2403 isperformed so as to check whether or not a physical address has been readproperly, in a manner similar to Step 2303 described with reference toFIG. 28. If it is determined that the address which has been readincludes an error, Steps 2401 and 2402 are performed so as to theperform recording in another spare region. If the write operation isnormally ended, a verification step 2404 is performed for verifyingwhether or not a write operation was successfully performed.Specifically, the confirmation of a successful write operation at theverification step 2404 involves reading data from the region for whichthe write operation was performed, comparing the read data against thedata which was intended to be written, calculations associated witherror correction codes, and the like. After the verification step 2404,it is determined at Step 2405 whether or not the data includes an error.If the data includes an error, Step 2401 is again performed to allocateyet another spare region. If the error determination stop 2405determines no error, an SDL registration step 2406 is performed whichregisters the PSN of the defective region and the PSN of thecorresponding spare region on the SDL, and increments the SDL entrynumber by 1.

(2) File Structure Recording Process

After the file data recording process as described in (1) above iscompleted, a file structure recording process is performed so as toaccommodate any changes in the file data recording locations and anyupdates made to the size information. The actual file structurerecording process is similar to the aforementioned process from Steps2301 to 2309 except for handling different data contents and recordingareas. Specifically, a write operation for the file structure (Stop2310), an address read error determination (Step 2311), a verification(Step 2312), and a verification error determination (Step 2313) arerepeated, each time setting a next address (Step 2315), until theprocess is terminated as a data end is determined (Step 2314).

The replacement processes (Steps 2316 and 2317) which are performed inthe case where an error is determined in the error determination Steps(2311 and 2313, respectively) are similar to the replacement step 2308or 2309 for the aforementioned file data recording process, which havebeen described with reference to FIG. 29.

(3) Data Reproduction

Next, the operation of reading data which has been recorded inaccordance with the recording method illustrated in FIGS. 28 and 29 willbe described with reference to FIG. 30. Specifically, FIG. 30 is aflowchart illustrating the operation of reproducing one extent (as partof the file data of the files recorded on a disk). Hereinafter, therespective steps of this process will be described.

Prior to reproduction, a disk reproduction apparatus (not shown in thefigure) reads the file structure information at Step 2501. Next, at Step2502, the file structure which was read at Step 2501 is interpreted soas to obtain therefrom an LSN at which the file data of a file to bereproduced ls recorded, as well as the size of that file. Thereafter, atStep 2503, the LSN is converted into a PSN, which is set as a readlocation. At Step 2504, it is determined whether or not the readlocation expressed by its PSN has been registered as a defective regionPSN on the SDL in the defect management information 2604. If the readlocation is registered on the SDL as a defective region PSN, thereproduction apparatus calculates the PSN of a spare region whichcorresponds to the defective region from the SDL, and performs areproduction process for the spare region at Step 2506. If the readlocation is not registered as a defective region PSN on the SDL, at Step2505, the reproduction apparatus performs a reproduction process for thePSN as obtained through the conversion at Step 2503. After thereproduction step 2505 or 2506, the reproduction apparatus determineswhether or not all data of the extent which is currently subjected toreproduction has been in fact reproduced at Step 2607. If thereproduction of all of the data is not complete, at Step 2508, a PSN tobe reproduced next is set to an address which is obtained by adding thesize of data which has been reproduced to the PSN obtained through theaforementioned conversion at Step 2503, and the reproduction processfrom Step 2504 is repeated. If it is determined at step 2507 that thereproduction of all data of the extent in question is complete, theprocess is terminated.

However, according to the above-described conventional technique, if thedefective region 2623 exists in the FILE1 extent in the data arrangementas shown in FIG. 26, the corresponding spare region 2624 which isallocated within the spare area 2622 will require a seek operation tooccur over a considerable distance. For example, in order tocontinuously reproduce all of the FILE1 extent, portions of the FILE1extent that are in the user area 2621 are first reproduced. Then, uponencountering the defective region 2623, a seek for the spare area 2622and a concomitant rotation wait period must occur before the access tothe spare region 2624 becomes possible. Similarly, after an access ismade to the spare region 2624, a seek from the spare region 2624 back toa region lying subsequent to the defective region 2623 and a concomitantrotation wait period must occur before the access to the remainder ofthe FILE 1 extent becomes possible. The same also applies to anydefective region 2625 in the FILE2 extent.

Thus, a significant delay occurs during a recording or reproductionprocess if any defective regions (e.g., 2623 or 2625) exist in the userarea 2621. It is presumable that such delay may not be criticallyproblematic in the case of disks which are utilized as large-capacitystorage media for traditional computer applications. However, such delaymay well be critically problematic in real-time recording and/or smoothreproduction of data containing digital video and audio data(hereinafter referred to as “AV data”). For example, problems such aspartial loss of AV data, noise generation, inability to perform smoothreproduction, may occur.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect of the present invention, there is provided an informationrecording medium for recording and reproducing data thereon on asector-by-sector basis, the recorded data being managed as at least onefile by using a file structure, wherein the file structure includesunused space management information for identifying a used region and anunused region, and wherein at least one defective region is registeredas an unused region in the unused space management information, the atleast one defective region being a region on the information recordingmedium which is incapable of proper reproduction of the recorded data.

In one embodiment of the invention, the at least one defective region isa region in which a physical address representing location informationon the information recording medium cannot be properly read.

In another embodiment of the invention, the at least one defectiveregion is a region which is determined, in a verification operationperformed subsequent to recording of the data, as not having the dataproperly recorded.

In still another embodiment of the invention, the information recordingmedium includes ECC blocks as units for performing an error correctionprocess, each ECC block including a plurality of sectors, and the atleast one defective region is managed on an ECC block-by-ECC blockbasis.

Alternatively, there is provided an information recording medium forrecording and reproducing data thereon on a sector-by-sector basis,including ECC blocks as units for performing an error correctionprocess, each ECC block including a plurality of sectors, wherein atleast one sector having data recorded therein is managed as an extent,and at least one extent is managed as a file, at least one file beingmanaged by using a file structure, and wherein, in a case where datawhich is not large enough to fill one ECC block exists in the at leastone file, an unused region of the one ECC block is managed as a paddingextent, thereby indicating that the unused region of the one ECC blockis an allocated but unused portion of the at least one file.

In one embodiment of the invention, an extent type is registered in filemanagement information in a one-to-one relationship with the at leastone extents the extent type being identification information foridentifying the padding extent.

Alternatively, there is provided an information recording medium forrecording and reproducing data thereon on a sector-by-sector basis, therecorded data being managed as at least one file by using a filestructure, wherein, for each of the at least one file, the filestructure includes an AV flag, the AV flag being identificationinformation for identifying an AV file containing at least one of videoinformation and audio information.

In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided aninformation recording method for recording data on an informationrecording medium for recording and reproducing data on asector-by-sector basis, the recorded data being managed as at least onefile by using a file structure, the method including: a recording regionallocation step for allocating a recording region for recording thedata; a skip recording step for recording the data in the recordingregion allocated during the recording region allocation step whileskipping a defective region in the recording region allocated during therecording region allocation step: and a file management informationgeneration step for registering a portion of the recording region inwhich the data was recorded without skipping, as an extent in filemanagement information, registering the portion as an used region inunused space management information, and registering the skippeddefective region as an unused region in the unused space managementinformation.

In one embodiment of the invention, the information recording methodincludes: a file data attribute determination step for determining dataattribute of the at least one file to be recorded; and a replacementrecording step for recording the data while replacing the defectiveregion within the recording region allocated during the recording regionallocation step with a non-defective region, wherein recording of thedata occurs in the skip recording step if the file data attributedetermination step determines the data attribute of the at least onefile to be recorded as indicating an AV file containing at least one ofvideo information and audio information as opposed to a non-AV file, oroccurs in the replacement recording step if the file data attributedetermination step determines the data attribute of the at least onefile to be recorded as indicating a non-AV file.

In another embodiment of the invention, the skip recording step includesa data verification step for checking whether or not the recorded datais properly recorded, and the defective region includes a region havingbeen determined as containing an error during the data verificationstep.

In still another embodiment of the invention, the information recordingmedium includes ECC blocks as units for performing an error correctionprocess, each ECC block including a plurality of sectors, wherein theskip recording step skips the defective region on an ECC block-by-ECCblock basis, and wherein the file management information generation stepregisters the defective region in the unused space managementinformation on an ECC block-by-ECC block baste.

In still another embodiment of the invention, the recording regionallocation step includes an allowable skip number calculation step forcalculating an allowable skip number, the allowable skip numberrepresenting a maximum number of skips that can be made while allowingthe data to be entirely recorded within the recording region allocatedduring the recording region allocation step, wherein the skip recordingstep includes a skip recording instructing stop for requesting recordingto be begun, while designating the calculated allowable skip number andlocation information of the recording region allocated during therecording region allocation step, wherein the file managementinformation generation step includes a recording location informationtransfer step for transferring recording location informationrepresenting a location of a portion of the recording region in whichthe data was recorded without skipping during the skip recording step,and wherein the file management information generation step generatesfile management information based on the recording location informationwhich was transferred during the recording location information transferstep.

In still another embodiment of the invention, the skip recording stepincludes: a recording region designation step for designating therecording region allocated during the recording region allocation step,and a split recording step for recording the data in the recordingregions in a split manner, wherein the file management informationgeneration step includes a recording location information transfer stepfor transferring recording location information representing a locationof a portion of the recording region in which the data was recordedwithout skipping during the skip recording step, and wherein the filemanagement information generation step generates file managementinformation based on the recording location information which wastransferred during the recording location information transfer step.

In still another embodiment of the invention, the skip recording stopincludes: a recording region designation step for designating therecording region allocated during the recording region allocation step,and a split recording step for recording the data in the recordingregion in a split manner, and a recording status confirmation step forobtaining location information and a recording status as associated withprogress of the recording.

Alternatively, there is provided an information recording method forrecording the data on an information recording medium for recording andreproducing data thereon on a sector-by-sector basis, including ECCblocks as units for performing an error correction process, each ECCblock including a plurality of sectors, wherein at least one sectorhaving data recorded therein is managed as an extent, and at least oneextent is managed as a file, at least one file being managed by using afile structure, the method including: a recording region allocation stepfor allocating a recording region for recording the data; a skiprecording step for recording the data in the recording region allocatedduring the recording region allocation step while skipping a defectiveregion in the recording region allocated during the recording regionallocation step: and a file management information generation step forregistering a portion of the recording region in which the data wasrecorded without skipping, as an extent in file management information,registering the portion as an used region in unused space managementinformation, and registering the skipped defective region as an unusedregion in the unused space management information, wherein, in a casewhere an end of an extent falls in the middle of one of the ECC blocks,a remaining portion of the one ECC block is registered as a paddingextent in the file management information, thereby indicating that theremaining portion of the one ECC block is an allocated but unusedportion of the at least one file.

Alternatively, there is provided information recording method forrecording the data on an information recording medium for recording andreproducing data thereon on a sector-by-sector basis, wherein at leastone sector having data recorded therein is managed as an extent, and atleast one extent is managed as a file, at least one file being managedby using a file structure, the method including: a recording regionallocation step for allocating a recording region for recording thedata, a skip recording step for recording the data in the recordingregion allocated during the recording region allocation step whileskipping a defective region in the recording region allocated during therecording region allocation step; and

-   -   a file management information generation step for registering a        portion of the recording region in which the data was recorded        without skipping, as an extent in file management information,        registering the portion as an used region in unused space        management information, and registering the skipped defective        region as an unused region in the unused space management        information, wherein, the file management information generation        step includes an AV file attribute registration step for, if the        recorded file is an AV file containing at least one of video        information and audio information, registering file attribute is        information for identifying the AV file in the file management        information.

In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a diskrecording drive for recording data on a disk for recording andreproducing data on a sector-by-sector basis, the disk recording driveincluding: an instruction processing section for processing processingrequests; and a disk recording control section for controlling arecording process for the disk in accordance with a request from theinstruction processing section, wherein the instruction processingsection includes: a skip recording instruction processing section forreceiving a skip recording instruction and requesting the disk recordingcontrol section to perform recording, the skip recording instructionincluding a recording start location, a recording length, and anallowable skip number; and a recording location requesting instructionprocessing section for receiving recording location information of therecorded data from the disk recording control section and reporting therecording location information, and wherein the disk recording controlsection includes: a recording control information memory for storingrecording control information upon receiving the skip recordinginstruction, the recording control information including the recordingstart location, the recording length, and the allowable skip number; adefective region detection section for detecting a defective region onthe disk during a recording operation; a skip recording control sectionfor beginning a recording operation in accordance with the recordingcontrol information stored in the recording control information memory,wherein, in a case where a defective region is detected by the defectiveregion detection section during the recording operation, the skiprecording control section i) stops recording in the defective region andrecords a remainder of the data in a subsequent region, the remainder ofthe data including the data which would otherwise have been recorded inthe defective region, if the number of defective regions is equal to orsmaller than the allowable skip number, or ii) terminates the recordingoperation and reports an error to the skip recording instructionprocessing section, if the number of defective regions is larger thanthe allowable skip number; and a defective region recording locationstoring memory for storing location information of the defective regionskipped by the skip recording control section.

In one embodiment of the invention, the disk recording control sectionfurther includes a data verification section for reading and checkingthe data from a recorded region, and the defective region includes aregion which is determined by the data verification section ascontaining an error.

In still another embodiment of the invention, the skip recording controlsection determines the defective region on an ECC block-by-ECC blockbasis, in a case where the disk includes ECC blocks as units forperforming an error correction process, each ECC block including aplurality of sectors.

Alternatively, there is provided a disk recording drive for recordingdata on a disk for recording and reproducing data on a sector-by-sectorbasis, the disk recording drive including: an instruction processingsection for processing processing requests; and a disk recording controlsection for controlling a recording process for the disk in accordancewith a request from the instruction processing section, wherein theinstruction processing section includes: a recording region designationinstruction processing section for processing a recording regiondesignation instruction which designates location information of arecordable region, a split recording instruction processing section forprocessing a split recording instruction which instructs transferringdata to be recorded in a recording region designated by the recordingregion designation instruction, the data being transferred in a splitmanner; and a recording location requesting instruction processingsection for reporting recording location information of the recordeddata, and wherein the disk recording control section includes: arecording control information memory for storing location information ofthe recording region designated by the recording region designationinstruction, as recording control information; a defective regiondetection section for detecting a defective region on the disk during arecording operation; a skip recording control section for beginning arecording operation in accordance with the recording control informationstored in the recording control information memory, wherein, in a casewhere a defective region is detected by the defective region detectionsection during the recording operation, the skip recording controlsection i) stops recording in the defective region and records aremainder of the data in a subsequent region, the remainder of the dataincluding the data which would otherwise have been recorded in thedefective region, if the recording location information indicates alocation within the recording region as stored in the recording controlinformation memory, or ii) terminates the recording operation andreports an error to the split recording instruction processing section,if the recording location information indicates a location past therecording region as stored in the recording control information memory;and a defective region recording location storing memory for storinglocation information of the defective region skipped by the skiprecording control section.

In one embodiment of the invention, the disk recording control sectionfurther includes a data verification section for reading and checkingthe data from a recorded region, and the defective region includes aregion which is determined by the data verification section ascontaining an error.

In another embodiment of the invention, the skip recording controlsection determines an ECC block including the defective region as adefective region, in a case where the disk includes ECC blocks as unitsfor performing an error correction process, each ECC block including aplurality of sectors.

In still another embodiment of the invention, the instruction processingsection further includes a recording status reporting instructionprocessing section for receiving a recording status reportinginstruction and reporting a current recording location and a currentrecording status.

In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a datarecording method for recording data on a disk for recording andreproducing data on a sector-by-sector basis, the disk recording methodincluding: an instruction processing stop for processing processingrequests; and a disk recording control step for controlling a recordingprocess for the disk, wherein the instruction processing step includes:a recording region designation instruction processing step forprocessing a recording region designation instruction which designateslocation information of a recordable region; a split recordinginstruction processing step for processing a split recording instructionwhich instructs transferring data to be recorded in a recording regiondesignated by the recording region designation instruction, the databeing transferred in a split manner; and a recording location requestinginstruction processing step for reporting recording location informationof the recorded data, and wherein the disk recording control stepincludes: a recording control information storing step for storinglocation information of the recording region designated during therecording region designation step as recording control information; adefective region detection step for detecting a defective region on thedisk during a recording operation; a skip recording control step forbeginning a recording operation in accordance with the recording controlinformation stored during the recording control information storingstep, wherein, in a case where a defective region is detected by thedefective region detection step during the recording operation, the skiprecording control step i) stops recording in the defective region andrecords a remainder of the data in a subsequent region, the remainder ofthe data including the data which would otherwise have been recorded inthe defective region, if the recording location information indicates alocation within the recording region as stored during the recordingcontrol information storing step, or ii) terminates the recordingoperation and reports an error to the split recording instructionprocessing step, if the recording location information indicates alocation past the recording region as stored during the recordingcontrol information storing step; and a defective region recordinglocation storing step for storing location information of the defectiveregion skipped by the skip recording control step.

In one embodiment of the invention, the disk recording control stepfurther includes a data verification step for reading and checking thedata from a recorded region, and the defective region includes a regionwhich is determined by the data verification step as containing anerror.

In another embodiment of the invention, the skip recording control stepdetermines an ECC block including the defective region as a defectiveregion, in a case where the disk includes ECC blocks as units forperforming an error correction process, each ECC block including aplurality of sectors.

In still another embodiment of the invention, herein the instructionprocessing step further includes a recording status reportinginstruction processing step for receiving a recording status reportinginstruction and reporting a current recording location and a currentrecording status.

In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided aninformation recording system including an upper control apparatus andthe aforementioned disk recording drive, wherein the upper controlapparatus includes: an instruction issuing section for issuing aninstruction to the disk recording drive, a recording region allocationsection for allocating a recording region for recording the data; and afile management information generation section for generating filemanagement information for managing the at least one file recorded onthe disk, wherein the instruction issuing section includes: a skiprecording instruction issuing section for issuing a skip recordinginstruction for recording the data in the recording region allocated bythe recording region allocation section while skipping a defectiveregion in the recording region allocated by the recording regionallocation section: and a recording location requesting instructionissuing section for issuing a recording location requesting instructionfor requesting transfer of recording location information of a recordedregion, and wherein the file management information generation sectiongenerates file management information based on the recording locationinformation received by the recording location requesting instructionissuing section from the disk recording drive.

In one embodiment of the invention, if the recorded file is an AV filecontaining at least one of video information and audio information, thefile management information generation section registers information foridentifying the AV file in file attribute information.

In another embodiment of the invention, the file management informationgeneration section registers a defective region detected during therecording operation as an unused region in unused space managementinformation, the unused space management information being comprised inthe file management information.

Alternatively, there to provided an information recording systemincluding an upper control apparatus and the aforementioned diskrecording drive, wherein the upper control apparatus includes: aninstruction issuing section for issuing an instruction to the diskrecording drive, a recording region allocation section for allocating arecording region for recording the data; and a file managementinformation generation section for generating file managementinformation for managing the at least one file recorded on the disk,wherein the instruction issuing section includes: a recording regiondesignation instruction issuing section for issuing a recording regiondesignation instruction which, prior to a recording operation to thedisk, designates a recording region on the disk as allocated by therecording region allocation section; a split recording instructionissuing section for issuing a split recording instruction fortransferring data to be recorded in the recording region designated bythe recording region designation instruction issuing section, the databeing transferred in a split manner, and for requesting the diskrecording drive to record the transferred data: and a recording locationrequesting instruction issuing section for issuing a recording locationrequesting instruction for requesting reporting of recording locationinformation of the region recorded by the disk recording drive, whereinthe file management information generation section generates filemanagement information based on the recording location informationreceived by the recording-location requesting instruction issuingsection from the disk recording drive.

In one embodiment of the invention, if the recorded file is an AV filecontaining at least one of video information and audio information, thefile management information-generation section registers information foridentifying the AV file in file attribute information.

In another embodiment of the invention, the file management informationgeneration section registers a defective region detected during therecording operation as an unused region in unused space managementinformation, the unused space management information being comprised inthe file management information.

In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided aninformation reproduction method for reproducing data from an informationrecording medium for recording and reproducing data on asector-by-sector basis, the recorded data being managed as at least onefile by using a file structure, the method including: a reproductionregion setting step for, prior to reproduction of the at least one file,setting location information of at least one reproduction region toreproduce the data from; a continuous reproduction step for performing areproduction operation for the reproduction region as set during thereproduction region setting step, and continuing with a reproductionoperation for a subsequent region even if an error is detected duringreproduction; and a reproduction data transfer step for transferringreproduction data from the reproduction region as set during thereproduction region setting step.

In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a diskreproduction drive for reproducing data from an information recordingmedium for recording and reproducing data on a sector-by-sector basis,the recorded data being managed as at least one file by using a filestructure, the disk reproduction drive including: an instructionprocessing section for receiving and processing processing requests, anda reproduction control section for continuously reading the data fromthe disk and transferring the read data, wherein the instructionprocessing section includes: a reproduction region setting instructionprocessing section for, prior to a reproduction operation, processing areproduction region setting instruction which sets location informationof at least one reproduction region; and a read data transferinstruction processing section for processing a read data transferinstruction which requests transfer of read data, and wherein thereproduction control section includes: a read region information storingmemory for storing location information of the at least one read regionreceived by the reproduction region setting instruction processingsection; a read data storing memory for temporarily storing read data:and a continuous read-ahead processing section for performing aread-ahead process and, even if an error occurs during the readoperation, continuing with a read operation for a subsequent regionwithout stopping the read-ahead operation, the read-ahead processincluding previously reading the data from the disk and storing the readdata in the read data storing memory, wherein, upon receiving the readdata transfer instruction, the read data transfer instruction processingsection transfers the read data stored in the read data storing memory.

In another aspect of the present invention, there is provided aninformation reproduction system for reproducing data from an informationrecording medium for recording and reproducing data on asector-by-sector basis, the recorded data being managed as at least onefile by using a file structure, the information reproduction systemincluding an upper control apparatus and the aforementioned diskreproduction drive, wherein the upper control apparatus includes: a filemanagement information interpretation section for interpreting the filemanagement information to obtain location information and attributeinformation of the at least one file; and an instruction issuing sectionfor issuing an instruction for requesting processes to the diskrecording drive, wherein the instruction issuing section includes: areproduction region setting instruction issuing section for issuing areproduction region setting instruction based on the recording locationinformation of the at least one file as determined by the filemanagement information interpretation section, and a read data transferinstruction issuing section for issuing ex read data transferinstruction for requesting transfer of read data from the region asdesignated by the reproduction region setting instruction issuingsection, and for receiving the read data.

Thus, the invention described herein makes possible the advantages of(1) providing a data structure for a disk medium which permits real-timerecording/reproduction of AV data by forestalling seek operations to aphysically distant spare area so as to minimize any delay caused by adefective region: and (2) providing a data recording/reproduction methodfor use with such a, data structure.

These and other advantages of the present invention will become apparentto those stilled in the art upon reading and understanding the followingdetailed-description with reference to the accompanying figures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a data structure diagram illustrating an information recordingdisk according to Example 1 of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a data structure diagram illustrating a file entry for a filecontaining AV data according to Example 1 of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a data structure diagram illustrating a file entry for a filenot containing AV data according to Example 1 of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an informationrecording/reproduction system according to Example 1 of the presentinvention.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an AV data recording method usingan information recording/reproduction system according to Example 1 ofthe present invention.

FIG. 6 is a data structure diagram illustrating a command control blockof a “SKIP WRITE” command according to Example 1 of the presentinvention.

FIG. 7 is a data structure diagram illustrating a command control blockof a “READ SKIPPED ADDRESS” command according to Example 1 of thepresent invention.

FIG. 8 is a data structure diagram illustrating a skipped address dataformat according to Example 1 of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a skip recording process according toExample 1 of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating a method for reproducing a filecontaining AV data according to Example 1 of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a data structure diagram illustrating a command control blockof a SET READ AV AREA” command according to Example 1 of the presentinvention.

FIG. 12 is a data structure diagram illustrating a “SET READ AV AREA”data format according to Example 1 of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a data structure diagram illustrating a “READ AV” commandaccording to Example 1 of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a data structure diagram illustrating returned dataassociated with an AV data read error.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram illustrating an informationrecording/reproduction system according to Example 2 of the presentinvention.

FIG. 16 is a block diagram illustrating an AV data recording methodusing an information recording/reproduction system according to Example2 of the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart illustrating a recording method by a diskrecording/reproduction drive according to Example 2 of the presentinvention.

FIG. 18 is a data structure diagram illustrating a command control blockof a “SET RECORD AREA” command according to Example 2 of the presentinvention.

FIG. 19 is a data structure diagram illustrating a command control blockof a “WRITE AV” command according to Example 2 of the present invention.

FIG. 20 is a block diagram illustrating an informationrecording/reproduction system according to Example 3 of the presentinvention.

FIGS. 21A nd 21B are data structure diagrams illustrating data layoutson a rewritable disk according to Example 3 of the present invention.

FIG. 22 is a flowchart illustrating an AV data recording methodaccording to Example 3 of the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a data structure diagram illustrating a command control blockof a “SEND RECORDING STATUS” command according to Example 3 of thepresent invention.

FIG. 24A is a data structure diagram illustrating a “RECORDING STATUS”data format according to Example 3 of the present invention.

FIG. 24B is a table illustrating the code definitions of a “RECORDINGSTATUS” data format according to Example 3 of the present invention.

FIG. 25 is a schematic diagram illustrating the structure a general diskmedium.

FIG. 26 is a data structure diagram illustrating a conventionalinformation recording disk.

FIG. 27 is a schematic diagram illustrating a general file structure.

FIG. 28 is a flowchart illustrating a conventional information recordingmethod.

FIG. 29 is a flowchart illustrating an replacement process according toa conventional information recording method.

FIG. 30 is a flowchart illustrating a conventional informationreproduction method.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS (EXAMPLE 1)

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described by way of example,with reference to the accompanying figures.

FIG. 1 shows a data structure 1 of a disk medium according to Example 1of the present invention. In the date structure 100 shown in FIG. 1, aROOT directory includes a DIR1 directory, where the DIR1 directoryincludes two files, namely, an “AV_FILE” file 108 for storing AV dataand a “PC_FILE” file 110 for storing computer data. The description ofthe elements which have already been described with reference to FIG. 26in connection with the conventional technique is omitted. Only theelements which form the features of the invention will be described.

In a logical space 102 shown in FIG. 1, the “AV_FILE” file 10B includesthree extents, namely, an AV_FILE extent 105, an AV_FILE extent 106, andan AV_FILE padding extent 107. The PC_FILE 110 includes a PC_FILE extent109. The example shown in FIG. 1 illustrates a case where a defectiveregion 112 exists between the AV_FILE extent 105 and the AV_FILE extent106. The defective region 112 is a defective region which was detectedat the time of recording the AV_FILE (105 or 106). According to thepresent invention, in embodiments where a plurality of sectors composeone error correction unit (referred to as an “ECC block”), the defectiveregions are determined on an ECC block-by-ECC block basis, rather thanon a sector-by-sector basis.

In the case of the conventional information recording disk which hasbeen described with reference to FIG. 26, every defective region whichis detected at the time of recording is replaced with a spare regionwithin the spare area. However, in accordance with the informationrecording disk of the present invention, any defective region which isdetected at the time of recording AV data is skipped so as to preventdelays which would otherwise be caused by seek operations to aphysically distant spare area.

In the logical space 102 illustrated in FIG. 1, the end portion of theAV_FILE 108 is shown as including an extent having a special attribute,called an AV_FILE padding extent. Although no file data is recorded inthe AV_FILE padding extent, the AV_FILE padding extent is managed aspart of a file. The padding extent is employed for the following reason.In applications where a plurality of sectors compose one errorcorrection unit (or an “ECC block”), e.g., DVD-RAMs (Digital VersatileDisc Random Access Memories), it is desirable to prevent filescontaining AV data and files containing PC data from being mixed in thesame ECC block. Therefore, the padding extent is employed so as tocomplete an ECC block which includes but is not filled completely by anAV file, so that any PC files will belong in separate ECC blocks. As aresult, even in the case where AV files are recorded in real timewithout performing any time-consuming data verification checks (whichwould result in some degradation in reliability with respect to the AVfiles), it is still possible to record PC files which require muchhigher data reliability than AV files.

Unused space management information 101, which is recorded as filemanagement information is a bit map including bits which correspond toeach and every sector in a partition space 111 in a one-to-one manner.As shown in FIG. 1, regions in which file entries and extents arerecorded are labeled as “1”, meaning “used”. On the other hand, unusedregions and regions representing the unused space management informationitself are labeled as “0”, meaning “unused”. Note that the defectiveregion 1112 in the logical space 102 is labeled as “0”, i.e., “unused”.As a result, the defective region 112, which cannot be used forrecording AV data (because AV data require high real-time recordingcapabilities), can be used for the recording of PC data, because thereplacement process as described in connection with the conventionaltechnique may be performed with respect to PC data.

In the case of an information recording disk where a plurality ofsectors compose one ECC block, defective regions are registered on anECC block-by-ECC block basis. In the case of a DVD-RAM, one ECC block iscomposed of 16 sectors; therefore, one defective region includes atleast 16 sectors which are set to the “unused” status.

The physical space 103 is illustrated as including two defective regions113 and 114. The defective region 113 is a defeat which is detected atthe time of recording an AV file (oorresponding to the defective region112 in the logical space 102), and is managed by the file managementinformation in the logical space 102. On the other hand, the defectiveregion 114 is replaced with a spare region 116 within the spare area115, in a manner similar to the methods used in conjunction with theaforementioned conventional information recording disk. The spare region116 corresponds to the defective region 114, which is a defect that isdetected at the time of recording a PC file. Note that by performing theconventional defect management process for the defective regions (e.g.,114) which are detected at the time of recording a PC file, it becomespossible to attain compatibility with the conventional environment.

Note that, in the example illustrated in FIG. 1, the only region that insubjected to an replacement process is the defective region 114.Accordingly, in defect management information 104, an SDL registrationnumber 117 is set to “1”, and the first PSN of the defective region 114and the first PSN of the spare region 116 are registered.

FIG. 2 shows the data structure of an AV_FILE file entry 118. TheAV_FILE file entry 118 contains attribute information and recordinglocation information concerning an AV file. A descriptor tag 201, inwhich a unique value is recorded, is identification information foridentifying the beginning of the file entry. The file attributeinformation is recorded in an ICB tag 202. The location information ofan extent composing the AV_FILE is recorded in an allocation descriptor203.

The ICB tag 202 contains an already-recorded direct entry number 204 forindicating the entry number of already-recorded extents, and a flag area205 for indicating the file attribute information. Also recorded in theflag area 205 are an allocation descriptor type 206 for identifying thetype of the allocation descriptor, and an AV flag 207 for identifying anAV file from a PC file. Since the AV_FILE 108 is a file containing AVdata, the AV flag 207 is set to “1”. Based on the AV flag 207, it ispossible to identify whether a file is an AV file or a PC file.

For each extent, the allocation descriptor 203 includes an extent typefor indicating the attribute information of the extent, an extent lengthfor indicating the size information concerning the extent, and an extentlocation for indicating the location information as to where the extentis recorded. The extent type 209 in the allocation descriptor 208 forthe AV_FILE extent 105 is set to “0”, meaning a normal extent. As usedherein, a “normal extent” is defined as an extent in which file data isrecorded. On the other hand, the extent type 211 in the allocationdescriptor 210 for the AV_FILE padding extent 107 is set to “1”, meaninga padding extent. In other words, the AV_FILE padding extent is managedas part of a file although no file data is recorded in the AV_FILEpadding extent, as described above.

FIG. 3 shows the data structure of a PC_FILE file entry 119, which issimilar to the data structure of the AV_FILE file entry 118 (illustratedin FIG. 2) except that the AV flag 301 is “0”, meaning that the PC_FILEis a file which contains no AV data. The PC_FILE 110 does not include apadding extent because the PC_FILE 110 never utilizes a padding extentto fill up an ECC block. Accordingly, an extent type 303 in anallocation descriptor 302 for the PC_FILE extent 1101 is set to “0”,meaning a normal extent.

Thus, the information recording disk according to Example 1 of thepresent invention has been described above.

As described above, in accordance with the information recording diskaccording to the present example of the invention, the conventionalreplacement process is not performed for any defective region (e.g.,113) that is detected at the time of recording AV data. As a result, itis possible to perform data recording/reproduction without incurring anydelay associated with such replacement processes. Instead, the presentinvention makes possible a high-speed defect management which involvessimply skipping the defective region 112, whereas the conventionaldefect management method would require the aforementioned replacementprocess for providing an error-free logical space 2602. In addition, byregistering a defective region which is detected at the time ofrecording AV data as an unused region, such a defective region can beused for the recording of PC data in embodiments where theaforementioned replacement process is performed with respect to the PCdata (note that AV data require high real-time recording capabilities).

In embodiments where the information recording disk includes ECC blocks,each consisting of a plurality of sectors, the information recordingdisk according to the present example of the invention attains excellentreliability as an information recording disk by registering defectiveregions on an ECC block-by-ECC block basis.

In embodiments where the information recording disk includes ECC blocks,each consisting of a plurality of sectors, the information recordingdisk according to the present example of the invention provides forexcellent reliability of PC date even if both AV data and PC data arepresent on the same disk, by registering a padding extent for ensuringthat an ECC block in which AV data is recorded does not include any PCdata, and by providing identification information for every extent.

The information recording disk according to the present example of theinvention contains identification information for identifying an AV filefrom a non-AV file as file attributes. As a result, it is possible toselectively employ different reproduction methods in accordance with thespecific file attributes. For example, in the case of reproducing an AVfile, it is possible to place a higher priority on real-timecapabilities than on data reliability.

Next, with reference to the figures, an informationrecording/reproduction system according to Example 1 of the presentinvention for recording or reproducing data on the disk medium shown inFIG. 1 will be described, with respect to its structure and operations.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating the structure of the informationrecording/reproduction system 400. As shown in FIG. 4, the informationrecording/reproduction system 400 includes an upper control apparatus410 for controlling the entire system, a disk recording/reproductiondrive 420 for controlling the recording/reproduction of an informationrecording disk or medium, e.g., rewritable disk, (not shown in FIG. 4)in accordance with instructions from the upper control apparatus 410, amagnetic disk apparatus 450, an AV data output section 460 forconverting digital AV data into analog video/audio signals andoutputting the resultant analog video/audio signals, an AV data inputsection 470 for converting the input analog AV signal into digital AVdata, and an IO/bus 480 for transmitting/receiving data and/or controlinformation.

The upper control apparatus 410 is composed essentially of amicroprocessor including a control program and memories for calculationpurposes. The upper control apparatus 410 includes: a recording regionallocation is section 411 for allocating a recording region at the timeof recording; a file management information generation section 412 forgenerating file management information of the recorded files; a filemanagement information interpretation section 413 for calculating therecording location of a file and determining attribute information fromthe file management information; a data buffer memory 414 fortemporarily storing data; and an instruction issuing section 415 forissuing instructions to the disk recording/reproduction drive 420. Theinstruction issuing section 415 includes a skip recording instructionissuing section 416 for issuing a skip recording instruction whichrequests a recording while skipping a defective region; a recordinglocation requesting instruction issuing section 417 for issuing arecording location requesting instruction which requests returning oflocation information for determining a region in which data has beenrecorded after recording; a reproduction region setting instructionissuing section 418 for issuing a reproduction region settinginstruction which designates a region to be reproduced (hereinafterreferred to as a “reproduction region”) prior to reproduction; and aread data transfer instruction issuing section 419 for issuing a readdata transfer instruction which requests the transfer of data which hasbeen read.

The disk recording/reproduction drive 420 is composed essentially of amicroprocessor including a control program and memories for calculationpurposes, a mechanism which is controlled by the microprocessor, andsignal processing circuitry. Functionally, the diskrecording/reproduction drive 420 includes: an instruction processingsection 421 for processing instructions from the upper control apparatus410; a recording control section 430 for controlling the recording ontoa rewritable disk; and a reproduction control section 440 forcontrolling the reproduction from the rewritable disk. The instructionprocessing section 421 includes: a skip recording instruction processingsection 422 for processing a skip recording instruction; a recordinglocation requesting instruction processing section 423 for processing arecording location requesting instruction; a reproduction region settinginstruction processing section 424 for processing a reproduction regionsetting instruction; and a read data transfer instruction processingsection 425 for processing a read data transfer instruction. Therecording control section 430 includes: a defective region detectionsection 431 for detecting a defective region at the time of recording; askip recording control section 432 for performing a recording whileskipping a defective region which is detected at the time of recording;a recording location storing memory 433 for storing informationconcerning a location at which data is recorded; a data verificationsection 434 for reading recorded data after recording so an to checkwhether or not the data is properly recorded; a recording controlinformation memory 435 for storing control information which isnecessary for recording, e.g., a recording beginning location and arecording length; and a recording data storing memory 436 fortemporarily storing data which to received from the kipper controlapparatus 410. The reproduction control section 440 includes a readregion information storing memory 441 for storing location informationof a reproduction region which is designated by the upper controlapparatus 410 prior to reproduction; a read data storing memory 442 fortemporarily storing data which is read from a rewritable disk; and acontinuous read-ahead processing section 443 for performing a read-aheadprocess (defined later) in accordance with predetermined read regioninformation and continuing the read-ahead process without stoppingresponsive to the occurrence of an error during a read process.

Next, a recording method for recording a file containing AV data byusing the information recording/reproduction system 400 illustrated inFIG. 4 will be described with reference to an overall control processshown in FIG. 5. The description of the overall control procedure willoccasionally divert to descriptions of the respective data structures ofinstructions and communication data transferred between the uppercontrol apparatus 410 and the disk recording/reproduction drive 420 withreference to FIGS. 6, 7, and 8. Also, the recording procedure by thedisk recording/reproduction drive 420 will be specifically describedwith reference to flowchart shown in FIG. 9. In the overall controlprocess shown in FIG. 5, it is assumed that the file managementinformation for the file recorded on a rewritable disk was previouslyread at the time of insertion of the disk and interpreted by the filemanagement information interpretation section 413, and that the filemanagement information is retained in the upper control apparatus 410.The overall control process shown in FIG. 5 includes a group ofprocesses 521 to be performed by the upper control apparatus 410, agroup of processes 523 to be performed by the diskrecording/reproduction drive 420, and flows 522 of instructions, data,process results in an IF protocol between the upper control apparatus410 and the disk recording/reproduction drive 420.

(Step 501) The upper control apparatus 410 controls the AV data inputsection 470 to begin receiving AV data. The AV data which is input viathe AV data input section 470 is converted into digital data by the AVdata input section 470, and thereafter transferred via the I/O bus 480so as to be stored in the data buffer memory 414.

(Step 502) Prior to recording the AV data, the recording regionallocation section 411 in the upper control apparatus 410 obtains vacantregion information concerning the rewritable disk from the filemanagement information interpretation section 413, and allocates arecording region. The recording region allocation section 411 allocatesa recording region by considering the size of the allocated regions andthe physical distance between regions so that the AV data can besmoothly reproduced later.

(Step 503) The skip recording instruction issuing section 416 obtainslocation information of the region which has been allocated by therecording region allocation section 411, and issues a “SKIP WRITE”command (as a skip recording instruction) to the diskrecording/reproduction drive 420. At this time, the skip recordinginstruction issuing section 416 designates, as parameters of the “SKIPWRITE” command, the location information of the region which has beenallocated by the recording region allocation section 411, the sizeinformation of the data to be recorded, and the allowable number ofskips which may be made at the time of detecting defective regions(i.e., the maximum number of skips that can be made while allowing thedata to be entirely recorded within the allocated recording region).Subsequent to the “SKIP WRITE” command, a size of data which has beendesignated by the “SKIP WRITE” command is transferred from the databuffer memory 414 to the disk recording/reproduction drive 420. FIG. 6shows a command control block, which is the data structure which istransferred as the “SKIP WRITE” command. The “SKIPWRITE” command has acommand control block length of 12 bytes. A unique instruction codewhich identifies a “SKIP WRITE” command is represented by byte 0. TheLSN (location information) of a sector at which to begin recording isrepresented by the four bytes from byte 2 to byte 5. The number of ECCblocks which may be skipped in the case where a defective region isdetected during a recording operation (i.e., allowable number of skips)is represented by byte 6. The number of sectors in the data to betransferred (i.e., size information) is represented by the two bytesfrom byte 7 to byte 8.

(Step 504) Having received the “SKIP WRITE” command from the uppercontrol apparatus 410, the skip recording instruction processing section422 in the disk recording/reproduction drive 420 requests the skiprecording control section 432 to perform a recording process for thetransferred data, starting from a start LSN designated on the rewritabledisk. Hereinafter, this operation of the disk recording/reproductiondrive 42 b will be described with reference to the flowchart shown inFIG. 9.

(Step 901) The skip recording instruction processing section 422receives the “SKIP WRITES” command and the recording data from the uppercontrol apparatus 410. Along with the “SKIP WRITE” command, the skiprecording instruction processing section 422 receives the followingparameters which are necessary for executing the command: a parameter“ADR” indicating a start LSN, a parameter “LEN” indicating the number ofsectors in the data to be recorded, and a parameter “MAX_SKP” indicatingthe maximum allowable number of skips which can be made at the time ofdetecting defective regions. The skip recording instruction processingsection 422 stores these parameters in the recording control informationmemory 435. The parameter “MAX_SKP” indicating the maximum allowablenumber of skips is a variable which is calculated by the recordingregion allocation section 411 in the upper control apparatus 410.Specifically, the parameter “MAX_SKP” is calculated to be a value suchthat any down-shift of the recording location on the rewritable disk dueto skipping a defective region will not result in the destruction of asubsequent region which is already in use.

(Step 902) Having received the “SKIP WRITE” command, the diskrecording/reproduction drive 420 initializes a region within therecording control information memory 435 for storing the number of ECCblocks that were skipped during recording, and a region for storing thesize of data which has already been recorded, both to zero.

(Step 903) Thereafter, the skip recording instruction processing section422 receives the data to be recorded on the rewritable disk and storesthe data in the recording data storing memory 436.

(Step 904) After a predetermined amount of data has been stored in therecording data storing memory 436, the skip recording control section432 begins a recording operation to the rewritable disk.

(Step 905) During the recording operation, the defective regiondetection section 431 determines whether or not the region which isunder recording is a defective region. The defective region detectionsection 431 determines a defective region if either one of the followingcriteria is satisfied: (i) if the physical address which is assigned toeach sector as location information on the rewritable disk has not beenproperly, read (in which case the entire ECC block containing such asector will be determined as a defective region); or (ii) if themonitored amplitude of the amount of light which is reflected from therewritable disk during recording appears disturbed in a given regionover a predetermined level (in which case the entire ECC blockcontaining such a sector will be determined as a defective region). Ineither case of determining a defective region, the process branches outto Step 910.

(Steps 906, 907) If the recording operation has been completed properly,the data verification section 434 determines whether or not the data hasbeen properly recorded by reading out the data in the region for whichthe recording operation has been performed. If the data verificationsection 434 determines an error as a result of the verification, theprocess branches out to Step 910.

(Step 908) If the data verification section 434 determines no error, thenumber of sectors which have been recorded is added to the number ofalready-recorded blocks.

(Step 909) Thereafter, the skip recording control section 432 determineswhether or not the number of already-recorded blocks is equal to thevariable “LEN” which is stored in the recording control informationmemory 435. If the number of already-recorded blocks is equal to thevariable “LEN”, it is determined that all of the designated data hasbeen recorded, and the process is terminated. On the other hand, if thenumber of already-recorded blocks it smaller than the variable “LEN”,the process goes back to Step 904 so as to perform recording of theremainder of the data.

(Step 910) If an error is determined at Step 905 or 907, the number ofskips having been made during recording is compared against the variable“MAX_SKP” which is stored in the recording control information memory435. If the number of skips which has been made during recording isequal to the variable “MAX-SKP”, it is determined that the maximumallowable number of skips (which is designated by the “SKIP WRITE”command) has been exceeded, and the process is abnormally-ended.

(Step 911) If the number of skips which has been made during recordingis smaller than the variable “MAX_SKP”, the number of skips isincremented by one in order to skip the detected defective region. (Step912) Furthermore, the first LSN of the skipped defective region isstored in the recording location storing memory 433. (Step 9131) Then,the skip recording control section 432 sets the location information forthe next recording operation to a subsequent region. Although omittedfrom illustration in the flowchart of FIG. 9, the location informationin the recording data storing memory 436 is also updated so that, afterskipping the defective region, the data which was going to be recordedin the defective region can be recorded in a subsequent region (i.e.,the region subsequent to the defective region). Thereafter, the processgoes back to Step 904 to perform recording for the subsequent region.

Thus, the skip recording control section 432 skips any defective regionswhich are detected at the time of recording, and stores the locationinformation of such defective regions, and continues the process untilall of the data are properly recorded.

(Step 505) Referring back to FIG. 5, having performed the skip recordingprocess, the disk recording/reproduction drive 420 returns a “completed”status to the upper control apparatus 410.

(Step 506) The recording location requesting instruction issuing section417 in the upper control apparatus 410 issues a “READ SKIPPED ADDRESS”command to the disk recording/reproduction drive 420 for inquiring thelocation information of the defective regions that were skipped duringthe skip recording process at Step 504. FIG. 7 shows a command controlblock of the “READ SKIPPED ADDRESS” command. Hereinafter, the datastructure of the command control block of the “READ SKIPPED ADDRESS”command will be described with reference to FIG. 7.

The command control block of the “READ SKIPPED ADDRESS” command is 12bytes long. A unique instruction code which identifies a “READ SKIPPEDADDRESS” command is designated in byte 0. An allocation length isdesignated in the two bytes from byte 7 to byte 8. As used herein, theallocation length indicates the memory size which is provided by theupper control apparatus 410 for storing the returned skipped addressdata. If the returned data is larger than the designated allocationlength, the disk recording/reproduction drive 420 performs a roundingprocess, so that no data which is larger in size than the allocationlength will be returned.

(Step 507) Referring back to FIG. 5, having received the “READ SKIPPEDADDRESS” command, the recording location requesting instructionprocessing section 423 in the disk recording/reproduction drive 420returns the location information of the defective regions which werestored in the recording location storing memory 433 during the skiprecording process at Step 504 as skipped address data.

FIG. 8 shows the format of the skipped address data, and the meaning ofthe respective fields of the skipped address data will be described withreference to FIG. 8. The skipped address data includes a skipped addressnumber 801 and a list 802 of skipped addresses. The two bytes from byte0 to byte 1 represent the skipped address number 801, in which thenumber of skipped addresses to be returned is set. Byte 2 and thesubsequent bytes represent a list 802 of first LSNs of the skipped ECCblocks. If the skipped address number 801 is 0, the list 802 of skippedaddresses is not returned. The skipped address is; returned on an ECCblock-by-ECC block basis. Therefore, in the case of a rewritable disk inwhich a plurality of sectors compose one ECC block, if the number ofskipped addresses is 1, it is indicated that there are as many defectivesectors as the number of sectors composing one ECC block.

(Step 508) Referring back to FIGS. 1, 2, and 5, having received theskipped address data, the file management information generation section412 in the upper control is apparatus 410 generates file managementinformation. The file management information generation section 412determines that the transferred size of data has been recorded inregions other than the regions which were skipped in accordance with theskipped address data, and generates a file entry 118 (FIGS. 1 and 2) ofAV files. At this time, the file management information generationsection 412 sets the bits in the unused space management information 101that correspond to the extents 105 and 106 which are designated by theallocation descriptor 203 (FIG. 2) in the file entry 118 to “1”, i.e.,“used”. Furthermore, the skipped regions are determined based on theskipped address data which was returned at Step 507. As a result, allsectors in the skipped regions are determined as defective regions, andtheir corresponding bits in the unused space management information 101are set to “0”, i.e., “unused”. If the end of a file extent (e.g., 106)falls in the middle of an ECC block, the file management informationgeneration section 412 registers the remainder of that ECC block as apadding extent (e.g., 107). At this time, the extent type 211 (FIG. 2)of the padding extent (e.g., 107) is set to “1” to identify a paddingextent. Thereafter, the file management information generation section412 stores the generated file management information in the data buffermemory 414 before the file management information is recorded on therewritable disk.

(Step 509) The upper control apparatus 410 issues a “WRITE” command,which requests the disk recording/reproduction drive 420 to record thegenerated file management information stored in the data buffer memory414 by a conventional recording method. An LSN at which to startrecording, and the number of sectors to be recorded, are designated asparameters in the “WRITE” command.

(Step 510) Having received the “WRITE” command, the diskrecording/reproduction drive 420 performs a recording process similar tothe conventional method for recording a file structure described withreference to FIG. 28. Any defective regions which are detected duringthe recording operation in accordance with the “WRITE” command aresubjected to an replacement process according to the conventionalreplacement method.

(Step 511) When the recording of all of the data which were designatedby the “WRITE” command is completed in accordance with the conventionalrecording method, the disk recording/reproduction drive 420 returns a“completed” status to the upper control apparatus 410. Thus, arewritable disk having the data structure shown in FIG. 1 can beaccomplished.

Thus, the information recording method according to Example 1 of thepresent invention has been described above.

Next, the reproduction method for AV files according to Example 1 of thepresent invention will be described, with reference to the overallcontrol process shown in FIG. 10.

The description of the overall control procedure will occasionallydivert to descriptions of the data structures of commands and datatransferred between the upper control apparatus 410 and the diskrecording/reproduction drive 420 with reference to FIGS. 11, 12, and 13.The overall control process shown in FIG. 10 includes a group ofprocesses 1021 to be performed by the upper control apparatus 410, agroup of processes 1023 to be performed by the diskrecording/reproduction drive 420, and flows 1022 of commands and datatransferred between the upper control apparatus 410 and the diskrecording/reproduction drive 420.

(Step 1001) The file management information interpretation section 413in the upper control apparatus 410 interprets a file structure on arewritable disk so as to determine whether or not the file to bereproduced is an AV file. If it is determined that the file to bereproduced is an AV file, the file management information interpretationsection 413 calculates the recording location of the file data of the AVfile to be reproduced and the size-to-be-read, and inform theseparameters to the reproduction region setting instruction issuingsection 418.

(Step 1002) The read data transfer instruction issuing section 419 inthe upper control apparatus 410 initializes a counter for counting thealready-read size to zero.

(Step 1003) The reproduction region setting instruction issuing section418 in the upper control apparatus 410 issues a “SET READ AV AREA”command, which sets the recording location of the file data and thesize-to-be-read (which have been calculated by the file managementinformation interpretation section 413) in the diskrecording/reproduction drive 420. Specifically, the “SET READ AV AREA”command is an instruction which, prior to the reproduction of an AVfile, sets one or more continuous regions in which file data arerecorded. FIG. 11 shows the data structure of a command control block ofthe “SET READ AV AREA” command. The “SET READ AV AREA” command controlblock consists of 12 bytes of data. A unique instruction code whichidentifies a “SET READ AV AREA” command is set in byte 0. In the twobytes from byte 7 to byte 8, a region data length (in bytes) to betransferred is designated. After transferring this command controlblock, the reproduction region setting instruction issuing section 418transfers region data of the size designated by the transfer data lengthto the disk recording/reproduction drive 420. FIG. 12 shows a SET READAV AREA data format, i.e., the region data to be transferred. The regiondata is composed of a list 1203 which includes the AV area number 1201(which represents the number of continuous regions to be set) and pairs1202 of start addresses (LSN) and end addresses (LSN). When the AV areanumber is “0”, the start LSN and the end LSN of any regions are nottransferred. Byte 2 and the subsequent bytes are set in the order of thestart LSNs and the end LSNs of the respective AV areas to be set forreproduction.

(Step 1004) Having received the “SET READ AV AREA” command, thereproduction region setting instruction processing section 424 in thedisk recording/reproduction drive 420 stores the reproduction regiondata, which is received from the upper control apparatus 410, in theread region information storing memory 441.

(Step 1005) Once informed that the reproduction region data has beenreceived from the reproduction region setting instruction processingsection 424, the continuous read-ahead processing section 443 in thedisk recording/reproduction drive 420 begins a read-ahead process whilereferring to the location information of the reproduction region whichis stored in the read region information storing memory 441. As usedherein, a “read-ahead process” is defined as a process of previouslyreading data from the rewritable disk in anticipation of a subsequentdata transfer request, and storing the data in the read data storingmemory 442. Usually, a data read operation is performed in such a mannerthat a region in which a read error occurred is first subjected to retryprocesses for recovering from the error; and if the error cannot besolved by such an error recovery process the read process is terminated,thereby marking an abnormal end. However, in a read-ahead processassociated with the “SET READ AV AREA” command, the continuousread-ahead processing section 443 does not perform retry processes evenif an error occurs; instead, the continuous read-ahead processingsection 443 continues with the read-ahead process for a subsequentregion. This is in order to prevent a substantial decrease in the datareading speed caused by retry processes, which might result in criticalproblems such as disturbances in the reproduced images during AV datareproduction.

The disk recording/reproduction drive 420 does not report an “error”status to the upper control apparatus 410. Therefore, in order toprevent malfunctioning due to the AV data output section 460 receivingerror-ridden data, the continuous read-ahead processing section 443reports an error by setting an error flag contained at a predeterminedposition in the returned data to “1”. The data structure which istransferred to the upper control apparatus 410 will be described in thedescription of Step 1010.

(Step 1006) After completing storing the received data and informing tothe continuous read-ahead processing section 443, the reproductionregion setting instruction processing section 424 in the diskrecording/reproduction drive 420 returns a “completed” status to theupper control apparatus 410 to indicate that the “SET READ AV AREA”command has properly ended.

(Step 1007) The upper control apparatus 410 performs an activationprocess for the AV data output section 460. Once activated, the AV dataoutput section 460 enters a reproduction data input wait state. Upondetecting transfer of reproduction data in this state, the AV dataoutput section 460 converts the transferred data into analog video/audiosignals, and outputs the analog video/audio signals.

(Step 1008) The read data transfer instruction issuing section 419 inthe upper control apparatus 410 issues a “READ AV” command, whichrequests transfer of the data which has been read from the rewritabledisk, to the disk recording/reproduction drive 420. FIG. 13 shows thedate structure of a command control block of the “READ AV” command. Thecommand control block of the “READ AV” command consists of 12 bytes ofdata. A unique instruction code which identifies a “READ AV” command isset in byte 0. In the four bytes from byte 2 to byte 5, the first LSN ofa region for which transfer of read data is required is designated. Thetwo bytes from byte 7 to byte a indicate the transfer length, in whichthe data length (in bytes) for which transfer is required is designated

(Step 1009) Having received the “READ AV” command, the read datatransfer instruction processing section 425 in the diskrecording/reproduction drive 420 confirms whether or not the AV data inthe region which is designated by the parameters of the “READ AV”command is already stored in the read data storing memory 442. If it isdetermined that the AV data which is reed from the designated region isalready stored in the read data storing memory 442, the read datatransfer instruction processing section 425 immediately transfers the AVdata to the upper control apparatus 410. On the other hand, if it isdetermined that the AV data which is read from the designated region isnot stored yet, the read data transfer instruction processing section425 performs data transfer only after the AV data is stored by thecontinuous read-ahead processing section 443.

(Step 1010) After the AV data which has been transferred by the readdata transfer instruction processing section 425 in the diskrecording/reproduction drive 420 is received by the read data transferinstruction issuing section 419, the AV data is stored in the databuffer memory 414. However, the returned AV data may contain an error,as mentioned with respect to Step 1005. FIG. 14 shows a data structure1400 of the read data which is transferred from the diskrecording/reproduction drive 420 to the upper control apparatus 410. Theread data has 2048 bytes per sector. A number of sectors of data, asdesignated by the transfer length parameter of the “READ AV” command, istransferred. In the case of AV data, the 2048 bytes of data composingeach sector corresponds to a unit referred to as a “pack” 1401. The pack1401 is further subdivided into a pack header 1402 (consisting of 14bytes) and pack data 1403 (consisting of 2034 bytes). The pack header1402 includes a pack start code 1404 in which a unique code foridentifying the beginning of a pack is stored, and an error flag 1405which indicates whether or not the pack data includes an error. As shownin FIG. 14, if the read data to be returned is the properly-read data1401, the error flag 1405 is set to “0”, meaning normal data. On theother hand, the error flag 1405A for data 1401A in which a read errorhas occurred is set to “1”, meaning that the data may include an error.Based on these error flags, the AV data output section 460 is capable ofrecovery processing by complementing the data from the preceding and/orsubsequent data, without reproducing any error-ridden data.

(Step 1011) The upper control apparatus 410 transfers the read datawhich is stored in the data buffer memory 414 to the AV data outputsection 460. Since the AV data output section 460 has been activatedsince Step 1007, any input reproduction data will be readily convertedinto analog video/audio signals for output.

(Step 1012) The read data transfer instruction issuing section 419 inthe upper control apparatus 410 adds the size of the AV data which hasbeen received from the disk recording/reproduction drive 420 to thealready-read size.

(Step 1013) The read data transfer instruction issuing section 419 inthe upper control apparatus 410 compares the already-read size againstthe file size which is under reproduction. If the already-read sizecoincides with the file size which is under reproduction, it isdetermined that the entire AV file has been read, and the process isterminated. If the already-read size does not coincide with the filesize which is under reproduction, the process goes back to Step 1008 inorder to reproduce the remainder of the AV data, and continues thereproduction operation.

Thus, the reproduction method according to Example 1 of the presentinvention has been described above.

As described above, in accordance with the information recording methodaccording to the present invention, any defective regions which aredetected at the time of recording are skipped during recording. As aresult, the delay in the recording/reproduction process associated withthe conventional replacement process is substantially eliminated,thereby enabling real-time recording/reproduction of AV data.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, defective regions are managed asunused regions by the file management information. This makes itpossible to record PC data by using a conventional replacement methodfor the LSNs which are determined as defective regions.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, by performing a data verificationprocess, it becomes possible to attain high reliability in applicationswhere real-time capabilities are required not during recording hutduring reproduction, e.g., recording AV data which is already stored ina magnetic disk apparatus 450.

Since an allowable number of skips is set during a skip recordingprocess, even if a large number of defective regions are skipped, it isstill possible to prevent the destruction of the subsequent regions inwhich other file data may be recorded.

If the end of an AV file extent happens to fall in the middle of an ECCblock, the remainder of that ECC block is registered as a paddingextent, thereby preventing other files from being recorded in the sameECC block. Accordingly, in embodiments where AV data are recordedwithout, any data verification in order to facilitate real-timerecording, it is still possible to prevent files containing AV data andfiles containing PC data from being mixed in the same ECC block. As aresult, the reliability of PC data is ensured.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, identification information foridentifying AV data from other types of data is registered in the filemanagement information, so that it is possible, at the time ofreproduction, to know whether or not the data requires real-timeprocessing capabilities. As a result, it is possible to perform thehigh-speed reproduction method illustrated in the present example forthe AV data, which may advantageously differ from the reproductionmethod used for PC data reproduction.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, one or more reproduction regions areset prior to reproduction in order to realize a read-ahead process forpreviously reading a plurality of regions, thereby making for evenfaster reproduction. AB a result, AV data reproduction can be performedso that video/audio information is smoothly reproduced withoutdisruptions.

Although the recording data is illustrated as being checked by the dataverification section 434 in the information recording method accordingto the present example of the invention, it will be appreciated thatsuch data verification may be omitted during recording in applicationswhere higher real-time capabilities are required, e.g., where AV data isinput at a very high transfer rate.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, the defective regions which aredetected during skip recording are registered as skipped and unusedregions in the file management information. Alternatively, the diskrecording/reproduction drive 420 may register such defective regions onthe SDL without allocating any spare regions therefor, and subsequentlyperform the allocation of an replacement location and the replacementprocess at the time of the next PC data recording.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, the defective regions which aredetected at the time of recording are skipped. However, it will beappreciated that all of the defective regions which have already beendetected and registered on the SDL may also be skipped.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, a region is designated based on itsstart LSN and end LSN by the reproduction region setting instruction.However, the designation may alternatively be based on a start LSN and aregion length, for example, so long as a region can be identified.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, the continuous read-ahead processingsection 443 may perform seek operations and the like as appropriate forensuring real-time capabilities during AV data reproduction.

In accordance with the information reproduction method according to thepresent example of the invention, the reproduction region settinginstruction issuing section 418 sets all the-reproduction regions withina file, prior to a reproduction process. However, in embodiments wherethe read region information storing memory 441 of the system has only asmall capacity, for example, it is also applicable to performreproduction in a number of subdivided stages, e.g., designating regionsup to the middle of a file and performing a reproduction processdirected to those regions, and thereafter designating subsequent regionsand performing a reproduction process directed to those regions.

In accordance with the information recording/reproduction system 400according to the present example, the transfer of information betweenthe upper control apparatus 410 and the disk recording/reproductiondrive 420 is achieved based on the recording location requestinginstruction, the reproduction region setting instruction, and the like.However, in embodiments where the upper control apparatus 410 and thedisk recording/reproduction drive 420 of the system share a commonmemory region, etc., which is accessible to both the upper controlapparatus 410 and the disk recording/reproduction drive 420, similarprocesses can be realized by performing writing/reading for such amemory region, thereby obviating the aforementioned instructions.

(EXAMPLE 2)

Next, with reference to the figures, an informationrecording/reproduction system 1500 according to Example 2 of the presentinvention for recording or reproducing data on the disk medium shown inFIG. 1 will be described, with respect to its structure and operations.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram illustrating the structure of the informationrecording/reproduction system 1500 according to Example 2 of the presentinvention. Hereinafter, the respective elements of the informationrecording/reproduction system 1500 will be described. The descriptionsof those elements which have their counterparts in the informationrecording/reproduction system 400 shown in FIG. 4 will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 15, the information recording/reproduction system 1500includes an upper control apparatus 1510, a disk recording/reproductiondrive 1520, a magnetic disk apparatus 450, an AV data output section460, an AV data input section 470, and an IO/bus 480.

The upper control apparatus 1510 is composed essentially of amicroprocessor including a control program and memories for calculationpurposes. The upper control apparatus 1510 includes a recording regionallocation section 411, a file management information generation section412, a file management information interpretation section 413, a databuffer memory 414, and an instruction issuing section 1511 for issuinginstructions to the disk recording/reproduction drive 1520. Theinstruction issuing section 1511 includes: a recording regiondesignation instruction issuing section 1512 for issuing a recordingregion designation instruction which designates a recording region priorto a recording operation; a split recording instruction issuing section1513 for issuing a split recording instruction for making a recordingrequest for a recording region and performing a data transfer in a splitmanner; a recording location requesting instruction issuing section 417for issuing a recording location requesting instruction which requestsreturning of the location information a location in which a file hasbeen recorded after recording; a reproduction region setting instructionissuing section 418 for issuing a reproduction region settinginstruction which designates a region to be reproduced prior to areproduction operation; and a read data transfer instruction issuingsection 419 for issuing a read data transfer instruction which requeststhe transfer of data which has been read.

The disk recording/reproduction drive 1520 includes: an instructionprocessing section 1521 for receiving and processing instructions fromthe upper control apparatus 1510; a recording control section 430 forcontrolling the recording onto a rewritable disk (not shown); and areproduction control section 440 for controlling the reproduction fromthe rewritable disk. The instruction processing section 1521 includes: arecording region designation instruction processing section 1522 forreceiving and processing a recording region designation instruction; asplit recording instruction processing section 1523 for receiving andprocessing a split recording instruction; a recording locationrequesting instruction processing section 423; a reproduction regionsetting instruction processing section 424; and a read data transferinstruction processing section 425. The structure of the recordingcontrol section 430 and the reproduction control section 440 is the sameas the structure of their counterparts in the informationrecording/reproduction system 400 according to Example 1 of the presentinvention, and the descriptions thereof are omitted.

Next, a recording method for recording a file containing AV data byusing the information recording/reproduction system 1500 illustrated inFIG. 15 will be described with reference to an overall control processshown in FIG. 16. The description of the overall control procedure willoccasionally divert to the block diagram of FIG. 15 showing theinformation recording/reproduction system 1500, a flowchart of FIG. 17showing a reproduction process, and data structure diagrams of FIGS. 18and 19 showing I/F commands. In the overall control process shown inFIG. 16, it is assumed that the file management information for the filerecorded on a rewritable disk was previously read at the time ofinsertion of the disk and interpreted by the file management informationinterpretation section 413, and that the file management information isretained in the upper control apparatus 1510. The overall controlprocess shown in FIG. 16 includes a group of processes 1621 to beperformed by the upper control apparatus 1510, a group of processes 1623to be performed by the disk recording/reproduction drive 1520, and flows1622 of instructions, data, process results in an instruction protocolbetween the upper control apparatus 1510 and the diskrecording/reproduction drive 1520.

(Step 1601) Upon detecting an input signal, the AV data input section470 begins receiving AV data. The AV data input section 470 converts thereceived analog video/audio signals into digital AV data, and transfersthe digital AV data to the data buffer memory 414 in the upper controlapparatus 1510.

(Step 1602) Prior to recording the AV data, the recording regionallocation section 411 in the upper control apparatus 1510 obtainsvacant region information concerning the rewritable disk from the filemanagement information interpretation section 413, and allocates arecording region for recording an AV file. The recording regionallocation section 411 allocates a recording region for the AV file byconsidering the size of the allocated regions and the physical distancebetween regions so au to attain a sufficient reading rate duringreproduction. Since defective regions may exist within the recordingregion, and such defective regions will be skipped, the recording regionallocation section 411 allocates a recording region which is larger thanthe actual recording size.

(step 1603) The recording region designation instruction issuing section1512 in the upper control apparatus, 1510 issues to the diskrecording/reproduction drive 1520 a “SET RECORD AREA” command, whichdesignates a recording region, thereby designating the locationinformation; of the recording region which was allocated at Step 1602.FIG. 18 shows command control block data structure 1800 of the “SETRECORD AREA” command. The command control block of the “SET RECORD AREA”command consists of 12 bytes. A unique instruction code 1801 whichidentifies a “SET RECORD AREA” command is designated in byte 0. The LSN1802 of the start sector of the recording region is represented by thefour bytes from byte 2 to byte 5. The LSN 1803 of the end sector of therecording region is represented by the four bytes from byte 6 to byte 9.Thus, the “SET RECORD AREA” command designates the region between thestart LSN and the end LSN of the recording region as a recording region.

(Step 1604) The recording region designation instruction processingsection 1522 in the disk recording/reproduction drive 1520 receives the“SET RECORD AREA” command which was issued from the upper controlapparatus 1510 at Step 1603, and stores the location information of therecording region in the recording control information memory 435.

(Step 1605) The recording region designation instruction processingsection 1522 in the disk recording/reproduction drive 1520 returns a“completed” status to the upper control apparatus 1510 to indicate thatthe instruction has been processed.

(Step 1606) The split recording instruction issuing section 1513 in theupper control apparatus 1510 issues a “WRITE AV” command, which is aninstruction for transferring the data to be recorded in the recordingregion as allocated at Step 1602 in a split form, and requestingrecording of the data on the rewritable disk. After transferring thecommand control block of this command, the split recording instructionissuing section 1513 transfers the designated size of data. FIG. 19shows the data structure 1900 of the command control block of the “WRITEAV” command, which is a split recording instruction. The command controlblock of the “WRITE AV” command consists of 12 bytes. A unique code 1901which identifies a “WRITE AV” command is designated in byte 0. Thetransfer length 1902 is designated (in sectors) in the two bytes frombyte 7 to byte 8. Since the “WRITE AV command is a command whichrequests recording data in the-region which has already been designatedby the “SET RECORD AREA” command, the “WRITE AV” command includes noparameters for designating any region in which to perform recording.

(Step 1607) Referring back to FIG. 16, the split recording instructionprocessing section 1523 in the disk recording/reproduction drive 1520receives recording data of the size as designated by the split recordingcommand “WRITE AV”, and stores the date in the recording data storingmemory 436. Thereafter, the split recording instruction processingsection 1523 informs the skip recording control section 432 in therecording control section 430 of the receipt of the recording request,and requests a skip recording operation to be begun. The process whichis performed by the disk recording/reproduction drive 1520 will bedescribed with reference to FIG. 17 in more detail.

(Step 1608) After instructing the skip recording control section 432 tobegin recording, the split recording instruction processing section 1523returns a “completed” status to the split recording instruction issuingsection 1513 to indicate that the process has been completed.

(Step 1609) After completion of the “WRITE AV” command, the splitrecording instruction issuing section 1513 in the upper controlapparatus 1510 determines whether or not all of the data to be recordedin the recording region as designated at Step 1602 has been transferred.If less than all of the data to be recorded has been transferred, theprocess goes back to Step 1606 to issue the split recording instruction“WRITE AV” command again. On the other hand, if it is determined thatall of the data to be recorded has been transferred, the split recordingprocess is terminated, and the process branches out to Step 1610.

(Step 1610) The upper control apparatus 1510 determines whether or notall of the AV data that was input from the AV data input section 470 hasbeen recorded. If less than all of the data to be recorded has beenrecorded, the process goes back to Step 1602 to again allocate a newrecording region. On the other hand, if it is determined that all of thedata in the file has been recorded, the process branches out to Step 506to enter a file management information generation process.

Steps 506 to 511 are similar to those which have been illustrated inFIG. 5 with reference to Example 1. Therefore, the descriptions thereofare omitted.

Next, the skip recording process and the split recording process by thedisk recording/reproduction drive 1520 will be described with referenceto the flowchart of FIG. 17. It is assumed that the “SET RECORD AREA”command (which designates a recording region) has already been receivedby the disk recording/reproduction drive 1520 and stored in therecording control information memory 435.

(Step 1701) The skip recording control section 432 refers to thelocation information of the recording region which is stored in therecording control information memory 435, and sets a recording locationat the beginning of the recording region.

(Step 1702) The instruction processing section 1521 in the diskrecording/reproduction drive 1520 waits for a command to be issued fromthe upper control apparatus 1510.

(Step 1703) Having received the “WRITE AV” command, which is aninstruction for transferring the recording data in a split form, thesplit recording instruction processing section 1523 apparatus 1510stores the received recording data in the recording data storing memory436, and requests the skip recording control section 432 to record thedata.

(Step 1704) Having received the data recording request, the skiprecording control section 432 begins to record the data which is storedin the recording data storing memory 436, starting from the recordinglocation on a rewritable disk.

(Step 1705) The defective region detection section 431 determines adefective region if the address which is assigned to each sector aslocation information on the rewritable disk has not been properly read,or if the monitored amplitude of the amount of light which is reflectedfrom the rewritable disk during recording appears disturbed. If thedefective region detection section 431 determines a defective region,the process branches out to Step 1706.

(Step 1706) If it is informed by the defective region detection section431 that a defective region has been detected, the skip recordingcontrol section 432 stores the first LSN of the defective region in therecording location storing memory 433 so that a recorded region can bedistinguished from a skipped region after the recording.

(Step 1707) If no defective region was detected by the defective regiondetection section 431 during recording, the data verification section434 performs a verification by reading the recorded data, and the datawhich has been read is subjected to an error correction process. Iferror correction is impossible or if the number of corrections exceeds apredetermined value, the region is determined as a defective region andthe process branches out to Step 1706.

(Step 1708) The region in which an error was detected by the dataverification section 434 is treated as a defective region at Step 1706.If no error is detected, it is determined that the data has beenproperly recorded.

(Step 1709) If the recording has properly ended, the defective regiondetection section 431 determines whether or not any data is left in therecording data storing memory 436 that has not been recorded yet. If itis determined that all data has been recorded, the defective regiondetection section 431 branches out to Step 1702 to enter a command waitstate for waiting a command from the upper control apparatus 1510. Onthe other hand, if any data is left unrecorded, the process branches outto Step 1710.

(Step 1710) In order to allow the unrecorded data to be recorded, thedefective region detection section 431 sets the recording location to alocation which lies next to the location in which recording has beencompleted.

(Step 1711) The defective region detection section 431 compares therecording location which was set at Step 1710 against the last LSN ofthe recording region which is stored in the recording controlinformation memory 435. If it is determined as a result of thecomparison that the recording location has gone past the last LSN, theprocess is abnormally-ended, indicating that the recording was notsuccessfully performed within the designated region. On the other hand,if it is determined that the recording location has not gone past thelast LSN, the process goes back to Step 1704 to record the remainingdata, starting from the recording location.

(Step 1712) The instruction processing section 1521 determines whetheror not the instruction which was received during the command wait stateat Step 1703 is a “READ SKIPPED ADDRESS” command, which is a recordinglocation requesting instruction. If the received command is not a “READSKIPPED ADDRESS” command, the instruction processing section 1521determines that an inappropriate command was issued during the splitrecording process, and returns an error to the upper control apparatus1510 and terminates the process. On the other hand, if it is determinedthat the recording location requesting instruction processing section423 received a “READ SKIPPED ADDRESS” command, the process branches outto Step 1713.

(Stop 1713) Having detected that the “READ SKIPPED ADDRESS” command hasbeen received, the recording location requesting instruction processingsection 423 returns to the upper control apparatus 1510 the locationinformation of the skipped region which was stored in the recordinglocation storing memory 433 during the skip recording process. Since thereturned location information of the skipped region has the same datastructure as that shown in FIG. 7 (described in Example 1), thedescription thereof is omitted. Having received this command, the diskrecording/reproduction drive 1520 determines that the split recordingprocess has been completed, and terminates the recording process.

Thus, the information recording method according to Example 2 of thepresent invention has been described above.

The information reproduction method which is performed by theinformation recording/reproduction system 1500 according to the presentexample is similar to that described in Example 1, and the descriptionthereof omitted.

As described above, in accordance with the information recording methodaccording to the present invention, the following advantages areprovided in addition to the advantage of the information recordingmethod according to Example 1.

A recording region is previously set, and thereafter recording isperformed in a split manner. As a result, it is possible to record AVdata even in embodiments where the data buffer memory 414 in theinformation recording/reproduction system has a small capacity relativeto a large recording region. By repetitively executing split recordinginstructions, it becomes unnecessary to occupy the I/O bus 480 betweenthe upper control apparatus 1510 and the disk recording/reproductiondrive 1520 for a long period of time. This advantage allows forapplications which require access to the magnetic disk apparatus 450.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, a region is designated based on itsstart LSN and end LSN by the reproduction region setting instruction.However, the designation may alternatively be based on a start LSN and aregion length, for example, so long as a region can be identified.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, the split recording instructionprocessing section 1523 is illustrated as returning a completed statusto the upper control apparatus 1510 after the recording in a region onthe rewritable disk which is requested of a split recording has beencompleted. Alternatively, the split recording instruction processingsection 1523 may return a “completed” status when the recording date isstored in the recording data storing memory 436, and the actualrecording onto the rewritable disk may take place later.

Although the recording data is illustrated as being checked by the dataverification section 434 in the information recording method accordingto the present example of the invention, it will be appreciated thatsuch data verification may be omitted during recording in applicationswhere higher real-time capabilities are required, e.g., where AV data isinput at a very high transfer rate.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, the defective regions which aredetected during skip recording are registered as skipped and unusedregions in the file management information. Alternatively, the diskrecording/reproduction drive 1520 may register such defective regions onthe SDL without allocating any spare regions therefor, and subsequentlyperform the allocation of an replacement location and the replacementprocess at the time of the next PC data recording.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, the defective regions which aredetected at the time of recording are skipped. However, it will beappreciated that all of the defective regions which have already beendetected and registered on the SDL may also be skipped.

In accordance with the information recording/reproduction system 1500according to the present example, the transfer of information betweenthe upper control apparatus 1510 and the disk recording/reproductiondrive 1520 is achieved based on the recording location requestinginstruction, the reproduction region setting instruction, and the like.However, in embodiments where the upper control apparatus 1510 and thedisk recording/reproduction drive 1520 of the system share a commonmemory region, etc., which is accessible to both the upper controlapparatus 1510 and the disk recording/reproduction drive 1520, similarprocesses can be realized by performing writing/reading for such amemory region, thereby obviating the aforementioned instructions.

(EXAMPLE 3)

Next, with reference to the figures, an informationrecording/reproduction system 3000 according to Example 3 of the presentinvention for recording or reproducing data on the disk medium shown inFIG. 1 will be described, with respect to its structure and operations.

FIG. 20 is a block diagram illustrating the structure of the informationrecording/reproduction system 3000 according to Example 3 of the presentinvention. Hereinafter, the respective elements of the informationrecording/reproduction system 3000 will be described. The descriptionsof those elements which have their counterparts in the informationrecording/reproduction system 400 shown in FIG. 4 will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 20, the information recording/reproduction system 3000includes an upper control apparatus 3010, a disk recording/reproductiondrive 3030, a magnetic disk apparatus 450, an AV data output section460, an AV data input section 470, and an IO/bus 480.

The upper control apparatus 3010 is composed essentially of amicroprocessor including a control program and memories for calculationpurposes. The upper control apparatus 3010 includes a recording regionallocution section 3011, a file management information generationsection 3012, a file management information interpretation section 413,a data buffer memory 414, a temporary file management informationstoring memory 3015 which is composed essentially of a non-volatilememory; and an instruction issuing section 3020 for issuing instructionsto the disk recording/reproduction drive 3030.

The instruction issuing section 3020 includes: a recording regiondesignation instruction issuing section 1512 for issuing a recordingregion designation instruction which designates a recording region priorto a recording operation; a split recording instruction issuing section1513 for issuing a split recording instruction for making a recordingrequest for a recording region and performing a data transfer in a splitmanner; a recording location requesting instruction issuing section 417for issuing a recording location requesting instruction which requestsreturning of the location information of a location in which a file hasbeen recorded after recording; a reproduction region setting instructionissuing section 418 for issuing a reproduction region settinginstruction which designates a region to be reproduced prior to areproduction operation: a read data transfer instruction issuing section419 for issuing a read data transfer instruction which requests thetransfer of data which has been read; and a recording status reportinginstruction issuing section 3021 for issuing a recording statusreporting instruction which requests reporting of a recording statusduring recording.

The disk recording/reproduction drive 3030 includes: an instructionprocessing section 3046 for receiving and processing instructions fromthe upper control apparatus 3010; a recording control section 430 forcontrolling the recording onto a rewritable disk (not shown); and areproduction control section 440 for controlling the reproduction fromthe rewritable disk.

The instruction processing section 3040 includes: a recording regiondesignation instruction processing section 1522, for receiving andprocessing a recording-region designation instruction, a split recordinginstruction processing section 1523 for receiving and processing a splitrecording instruction; a recording location requesting instructionprocessing section 423; a reproduction region setting instructionprocessing section 424; a read data transfer instruction processingsection 425; and a recording status reporting instruction processingsection 3041 for receiving a recording status reporting instruction andperforming a recording status reporting process. The structure of therecording control section 430 and the reproduction control section 440is the same as the structure of their counterparts in the informationrecording/reproduction system 400 according to Example 1 of the presentinvention, and the descriptions thereof are omitted.

Next, a recording method according to Example 3 of the present inventionwill be described with reference to FIGS. 21A and 21B. Later, thedetails of the recording method will also be described with reference toFIG. 22.

FIGS. 21A and 21B show data layouts of the logical space of a rewritabledisk according to the present example. FIG. 21A illustrates a datalayout of the logical space before any AV files are recorded, where onePC file is present under a directory DIR1. The volume structure, ROOTdirectory file structure, DIR1 file entry, DIR1 directory file, andPC_FILE file entry respectively are identical with their counterpartsdescribed with reference to FIGS. 1, 2, 3. Therefore, the descriptionsthereof are omitted. FIG. 21B illustrates a data layout of the logicalspace where an AV file has been recorded in unused regions which wereavailable in the logical space before recording.

Prior to recording, the upper control apparatus 3010 reserves at leastone of unused regions in the logical space for use as a recording regionfor AV files. A portion of an unused region 2101 shown in FIG. 21A isreserved as an AV reserved region 2102 (while the portion of the unusedregion that is not used as the AV reserved region 2102 is reserved as aregion for recording a file entry, i.e., file management information forAV files); an unused region 2103 is reserved as an AV reserved region2104; and an unused region 2105 is reserved as an AV reserved region2106. Prior to performing a recording operation, the upper controlapparatus 3010 designates the three AV reserved regions 2102, 2104, and2106 as recording regions to the disk recording/reproduction drive 3030.Thereafter, the upper control apparatus 3010 issues a split recordinginstruction, and transfers recording data to the diskrecording/reproduction drive 3030. The upper control apparatus 3010repetitively issues split recording instructions until all of therecording data has been transferred.

The disk recording/reproduction drive 3030 receives the recording datawhich has been transferred in accordance with the split recordinginstructions, and begins to record the data in the regions which havepreviously been designated as recording regions. At this time, therecording regions are sequentially used, following the order ofdesignation by the upper control apparatus 3010. In the exampleillustrated in FIG. 21, the recording starts from the beginning of theAV reserved region 2102, which was the first-designated AV reservedregion.

If the disk recording/reproduction drive 3030 uses up a whole recordingregion during the recording of the recording data which was transferredfrom the upper control apparatus 3010 in accordance with a splitrecording instruction, the disk recording/reproduction drive 3030 willautomatically continue to perform a recording operation for the nextdesignated recording region. In the example illustrated in FIG. 21,after completing recording to the AV reserved region 2102, the diskrecording/reproduction drive 3030 begins recording to the AV reservedregion 2104, automatically avoiding a PC_FILE extent 2107. The diskrecording/reproduction drive 3030 skips a defective region 3100 whichwas detected during recording, and records the recording data whichwould otherwise have been recorded in the defective region 3100 in asubsequent region.

If any recording data is left after having completed recording to theentire AV reserved region 2104, the disk recording/reproduction drive3030 skips a PC_FILE extent 2109, and performs recording for the AVreserved region 2106. Just like the defective region 3100 was skipped, adefective region 3101 in the AV reserved region 2106 is also skipped, sothat the recording data is recorded in a subsequent region. After therecording of all recording data is completed in the aforementionedmanner, the upper control apparatus 3010 registers each continuousregion, among all the regions in which AV data has been recorded, as anextent”. The upper control apparatus 3010 generates file entryinformation such that the respective AV data recording regions, asseparated by the PC_FILE extents and the defective regions, aredesignated as AV_FILE extents 2112, 2113, 2108, 2114, and 2110. Theupper control apparatus 3010 generates an AV_FILE file entry, which isrecorded in the AV reserved region 2102 (which was reserved within theunused region 2101).

Next, referring to FIG. 22, the aforementioned recording proceduredescribed with reference to FIG. 21 will be described in more detail.

(Step 3201) Upon detecting an input signal, the AV data input section470 begins receiving AV data. The AV data input section 470 converts thereceived analog video/audio signals into digital AV data, and transfersthe digital AV data to the data buffer memory 414 in the upper controlapparatus 3010.

(Step 3202) Prior to recording the AV data, the recording regionallocation section 3011 in the upper control apparatus 3010 obtainsvacant region information concerning the rewritable disk from the filemanagement information interpretation section 413, and allocates arecording region for recording an AV file. The recording regionallocation section 3011 allocates a recording region for the AV file byconsidering the size of the allocated regions and the physical distancebetween regions so as to attain a sufficient reading rate duringreproduction. The recording region allocation section 3011 allocates aplurality of continuous regions as recording regions. In the exampleillustrated in FIG. 21, AV reserved regions 2102, 2104, and 2106 areallocated as recording regions.

(Steps 3203 to 3205) The recording region designation instructionissuing section 1512 in the upper control apparatus 3010 issues to thedisk recording/reproduction drive 3030 a “SET RECORD AREA” command,which designates a recording region, so as to designate the locationinformation of the recording regions which were allocated at Step 3202following the order in which they were allocated. (The “SET RECORD AREA”command has already been described with reference to FIG. 18.) Therecording region designation instruction processing section 1522 in thedisk recording/reproduction drive 3030 receives the “SET RECORD AREA”command which was issued from the upper control apparatus 3010, andstores the location information of the recording region in the recordingcontrol information memory 435. The start LSN and the end LSN of therespective regions, following the order of the received recordingregions, are stored in the location information of each recordingregion. In a subsequent recording operation, the recording regions willbe used in the order of this storage.

(Step 3206) The split recording instruction issuing section 1513 in theupper control apparatus 3010 issues a “WRITEAV” command. The “WRITEAV”command is an instruction which transfers the data to be recorded in therecording regions as allocated at Step 3202 in a split form and requestsrecording of the data on the rewritable disk. (This command has alreadybeen described with reference to FIG. 19.) Having received the “WRITEAV” command, the split recording instruction processing section 1523 inthe disk recording/reproduction drive 3030 stores recording data of thesize as designated by its control block in the recording data storingmemory 436. Thereafter, the split recording instruction processingsection 1523 returns a “completed” status to the upper control apparatus3010. The received data to recorded after the returning of the“completed” status. Such an operation is usually referred to as a“write-back cache” operation.

(Step 3207) The recording location requesting instruction processingsection 423 in the upper control apparatus 3010 issues a “READ SKIPPEDADDRESS” command in order to obtain the recording locations within theportion which has actually been recorded on the rewritable disk. (Thiscommand has already been described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8.) Therecording location requesting instruction processing section 423 in thedisk recording/reproduction drive 3030 refers to the skipped addressinformation which is stored in the recording location storing memory433, and returns any unreported skipped address information to the uppercontrol apparatus 3010. Since any skipped address information that hasalready been returned is set to a “reported” status on the recordinglocation storing memory 433, such skipped address information will nolonger be returned responsive to any subsequent instances of the “READSKIPPED ADDRESS” command.

(Step 3208) The recording status reporting instruction issuing section3021 in the upper control apparatus 3010 issues a “SEND RECORDINGSTATUS” command to request reporting of the a current recording status.

A data structure 2300 of the command control block of the “SENDRECORDING STATUS” command is shown in FIG. 23. A unique code 1901 whichidentifies a “SEND RECORDING STATUS” command is designated in byte 0;i.e., a “SEND RECORDING STATUS” instruction code region 2301. Bytes 1 to7 are reserved for possible future extensions of instruction definitionor the like. In an “allocated length” field 2302, a memory size whichwas allocated by the upper control apparatus 3010 for the “RECORDINGSTATUS” data which is to be returned responsive to the “SEND RECORDINGSTATUS” command. If the allocated length 2302 is smaller than “16”, thedisk recording/reproduction drive 3030 returns an amount of dataequivalent to the allocated length 2302. Bytes 10 to 11 are reserved.

Having received the “SEND RECORDING STATUS” command, the recordingstatus reporting instruction processing section 3041 in the diskrecording/reproduction drive 3030 receives a current recording statusfrom the skip recording control section 432 in the recording controlsection 430, generates “RECORDING STATUS” data, and returns thegenerated “RECORDING STATUS” data to the upper control apparatus 3010.

A data structure 2400 of the “RECORDING STATUS” data is shown in FIG.24A. In bytes 0 to 1, a data length 2401 of the “RECORDING STATUS” datais stored. Since the data length 2401 does not include the length of the“RECORDING STATUS” data length field itself, “14 (bytes)” is set in thedata length 2401. A “RECORDING STATUS” data code field 2402 stores acurrent recording status as a one-byte code as shown in FIG. 24B. Asshown in FIG. 24B, “00h” in the field 2402 indicates that all therecording regions have been used (or no recording regions are set);“01h” in the field 2402 indicates that a recording region has been setbut no data to record exists; “02h” in the field 2402 indicates that arecording operation is being executed.

A “LSN under recording” field 2403, spanning from byte 4 to byte 7 ofthe “RECORDING STATUS” date format shown in FIG. 24A, stores a LSN whichis currently under recording. This field enables the upper controlapparatus 3010 to confirm the progress of recording. An “Unreportedsnipped address number” field 2404 from byte 8 to byte 9 stores thenumber of skipped addresses which have not been reported to the uppercontrol apparatus 3010, among the blocks which were skipped due todefective regions. An “Effective recording region number” field 2405from byte 10 to byte 11 stores the number of effective regions, amongthe regions which were designated by the upper control apparatus 3010 inaccordance with the “SET RECORD AREA” command. For example, in the casewhere three recording regions are designated if data recording has beenperformed for the first recording region and part of the way into thesecond recording region, then “2” (indicating the second and thirdrecording regions) is set in the field 2405. In a “Received butunrecorded data length” field 2406 from byte 12 to byte 13, the size ofdata which has been transferred from the upper control apparatus 3010 inaccordance with the “WRITE AV” command, but which has not been recorded,is set in multiples of 2048 bytes.

(Step 3209) The file management information generation section 3012 inthe upper control apparatus 3010 generates file management informationbased on the recording information which was obtained at Steps 3207 and3208 up to that point in time, and stores the generated file managementinformation in the temporary file management information storing memory3015.

(Step 3210) The split recording instruction issuing section 1513 in theupper control apparatus 3010 determines whether or not all of the AVdata that is stored in the data buffer memory 414 has been recorded. Ifit is determined that any data is left untransferred, the process goesback to Step 3206 to again issue the “WRITE AV” command. On the otherhand, if it is determined that all of the data to be recorded has beentransferred, the process branches out to Step 3211.

(Step 3211) The file management information generation section 3012 inthe upper control apparatus 3010 refers to the “RECORDING STATUS” datawhich was obtained at Step 3208, in order to determine whether therecording status is a “No recording data” status or not. If a “Norecording data” status is determined, the process branches to Step 3212to update and finalize the file management information for AV files. Onthe other hand, if a status other than the “No recording” status isdetermined, the process goes back to Step 3207 to wait for a “Norecording data” status.

(Step 3212) The file management information generation section 3012 inthe upper control apparatus 3010 generates file entry information forthe AV files which have been recorded, and generates managementinformation (e.g., unused space management information), and requeststhe disk recording/reproduction drive 3030 to perform a recordingprocess in accordance with a usual “WRITE” command.

Thus, the recording procedure for AV data has been described above.

The information reproduction method which is performed by theinformation recording/reproduction system 3000 according to the presentexample is similar to that described in Example 1, and the descriptionthereof is omitted.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, Step 3209 confirms a current recordingstatus and stores file management information in the temporary filemanagement information storing memory 3015. As a result, in the event ofa power failure during the recording of AV data, it is possible torestore the file management information that had been generated up tothe portion which was actually recorded on the rewritable disk.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, a region is designated based on itsstart LSN and end LSN by the reproduction region setting instruction.However, the designation may alternatively be based on a start LSN and aregion length, for example, go long as a region can be identified.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, the defective regions which aredetected at the time of recording are skipped. However, it will beappreciated that all of the defective regions which have already beendetected and registered on the SDL may also be skipped.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, the “READ SKIPPED ADDRESS” command andthe “SEND RECORDING STATUS” command are illustrated as being separatelydefined. Alternatively, these commands may be arranged so that the datato be returned responsive to these commands may be returned in acombined form, responsive to one command.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, Steps 3207 to 3209 are performed eachtime the “WRITE AV” command is issued. It will be appreciated, however,that these processes only need to occur within a predetermined period.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent example of the invention, the file management information isupdated at Step 3209. Alternatively, similar effects can be attained byupdating files for management information associated with so-called“trick play” modes, for example.

In accordance with the information recording disk according to thepresent invention, it is possible to perform recording/reproduction byskipping a defective region in a logical space which is managed based onfile management information. As a result, the present invention makespossible a high-speed defect management which involves simply skippingdefective regions, whereas a conventional defect management method wouldrequire replacement processes for providing an error-free logical spaceand therefore incur some delay.

In embodiments where the information recording disk includes ECC blocks,each consisting of a plurality of sectors, the information recordingdisk according to the present invention attains excellent reliability asan information recording disk by registering defective regions on an ECCblock-by-ECC block basis.

In embodiments where the information recording disk includes ECC blocks,each consisting of a plurality of sectors, the information recordingdisk according to the present invention provides for excellentreliability of PC data even if both AV data (which may be recordedwithout performing a data verification process because of their highreal-time recording capability requirements) and PC data (which requirehigh reliability) are present on the same disk. This can be realized byregistering a padding extent for ensuring that an ECC block in which AVdata is recorded does not include any PC data, and by providingidentification information for every extent, which ensures that no ECCblock will contain both AV data and PC data within the same block.

The information recording disk according to the present inventioncontains identification information for identifying an AV file from anon-AV file. As a result, it is possible to selectively employ differentreproduction methods in accordance with the specific file attributes.For example, in the case of reproducing an AV file, it is possible toemploy the relatively fast reproduction method according to the presentinvention.

As described above, in accordance with the information recording methodaccording to the present invention, any defective regions which aredetected at the time of recording are skipped during recording. As aresult, the delay in the recording/reproduction process associated withthe conventional replacement process is substantially eliminated,thereby enabling real-time recording/reproduction of AV data.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent invention, defective regions are managed as unused regions bythe file management information. This makes it possible to record PCdata by using a conventional replacement method for the LSNs which aredetermined as defective regions.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent invention, by performing a data verification process, it becomespossible to attain high reliability in applications where real-timecapabilities are required not during recording but during reproduction,e.g., recording AV data which is already stored in a magnetic diskapparatus. Since an allowable number of skips is set during a skiprecording process, even if a large number of defective regions areskipped, it is still possible to prevent the destruction of thesubsequent regions in which other file data may be recorded.

If the end of an AV file extent happens to fall in the middle of an ECCblock, the remainder of that ECC block is registered as a paddingextent, thereby preventing other files from being recorded in the sameECC block. Accordingly, in embodiments where AV data are recordedwithout any data verification in order to facilitate real-timerecording, it is still possible to prevent files containing AV data andfiles containing PC data from being mixed in the same ECC block. As aresult, the reliability of PC data is ensured.

In accordance with the information recording method is according to thepresent invention, identification information for identifying AV datafrom other types of data is registered in the file managementinformation, so that it is possible, at the time of reproduction, toknow whether or not the data requires real-time processing capabilities.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent invention, a recording region is previously set, and thereafterrecording is performed in a split manner. As a result, it is possible torecord AV data even in embodiments where the informationrecording/reproduction system incorporates a data buffer memory whichhas a small capacity relative to a large recording region. Byrepetitively executing split recording instructions, it becomesunnecessary to occupy a bus between an upper control apparatus and adisk recording/reproduction drive for a long period of time. Thisadvantage allows for applications which require access to the magneticdisk apparatus.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent invention, by regularly updating and storing file managementinformation in a non-volatile memory, it becomes possible to providemeans for data restoration in the event of an unexpected power failureor the like, without unfavorably disrupting the AV data recording.

In accordance with the information recording method according to thepresent invention, one or more reproduction regions may be set prior toreproduction in order to realize a read-ahead process for previouslyreading a plurality of regions, thereby making for even fastedreproduction. As a result, AV data reproduction can be performed so thatvideo/audio information is smoothly reproduced without disruptions.

Various other modifications will be apparent to and can be readily madeby those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spiritof this invention. Accordingly, it is not intended that the scope of theclaims appended hereto be limited to the description as set forthherein, but rather that the claims be broadly construed.

1. An information recording medium for recording and reproducing datathereon on a sector-by-sector basis, the recorded data being managed asat least one file by using a file structure, wherein the file structurecomprises unused space management information for identifying a usedregion and an unused region, and wherein at least one defective regiondetected as being defective during a recording operation is neverthelessregistered as an unused region in the unused space managementinformation so as to be identified in the unused space managementinformation as unallocated during a subsequent recording operation, theat least one defective region being a region on the informationrecording medium which is incapable of proper reproduction of therecorded data.
 2. An information recording medium according to claim 1,wherein the at least one defective region is a region in which aphysical address representing location information on the informationrecording medium cannot be properly read.
 3. An information recordingmedium according to claim 1, wherein the at least one defective regionis a region which is determined, in a verification operation performedsubsequent to recording of the data, as not having the data properlyrecorded.
 4. An information recording medium according to claim 1,wherein the information recording medium comprises ECC blocks as unitsfor performing an error correction process, each ECC block comprising aplurality of sectors, and wherein the at least one defective region ismanaged on an ECC block-by-ECC block basis.
 5. An information recordingmedium for recording and reproducing data thereon on a sector-by-sectorbasis, comprising ECC blocks as units for performing an error correctionprocess, each ECC block comprising a plurality of sectors, wherein atleast one sector having data recorded therein is managed as an extent,and at least one extent is managed as a file, at least one file beingmanaged by using a file structure, wherein, in a case where data whichis not large enough to fill one ECC block exists in the at least onefile, an unused region of the one ECC block is managed as a paddingextent, thereby indicating that the unused region of the one ECC blockis an allocated but unused portion of the at least one file, and whereinan extent type is registered in file management information in aone-to-one relationship with the at least one extent, the extent typebeing identification information for identifying the padding extent. 6.An information recording method for recording data on an informationrecording medium for recording and reproducing data on asector-by-sector basis, the recorded data being managed as at least onefile by using a file structure, the method comprising: a recordingregion allocation step for allocating a recording region for recordingthe data; a skip recording step for recording the data in the recordingregion allocated during the recording region allocation step whileskipping a defective region in the recording region allocated during therecording region allocation step, the defective region being detected asdefective during a recording operation; and a file managementinformation generation step for registering a portion of the recordingregion in which the data was recorded without skipping, as an extent infile management information, registering the portion as an used regionin unused space management information, and nevertheless registering theskipped defective region as an unused region in the unused spacemanagement information so as to be identified in the unused spacemanagement information as unallocated during a subsequent recordingoperation.
 7. An information recording method according to claim 6,comprising: a file data attribute determination step for determiningdata attribute of the at least one file to be recorded; and areplacement recording step for recording the data while replacing thedefective region within the recording region allocated during therecording region allocation step with a non-defective region, whereinrecording of the data occurs in the skip recording step if the file dataattribute determination step determines the data attribute of the atleast one file to be recorded as indicating an AV file containing atleast one of video information and audio information as opposed to anon-AV file, or occurs in the replacement recording step if the filedata attribute determination step determines the data attribute of theat least one file to be recorded as indicating a non-AV file.
 8. Aninformation recording method according to claim 6, wherein the skiprecording step comprises a data verification step for checking whetheror not the recorded data is properly recorded, and wherein the defectiveregion comprises a region having been determined as containing an errorduring the data verification step.
 9. An information recording methodaccording to claim 6, wherein the information recording medium comprisesECC blocks as units for performing an error correction process, each ECCblock comprising a plurality of sectors, wherein the skip recording stepskips the defective region on an ECC block-by-ECC block basis, andwherein the file management information generation step registers thedefective region in the unused space management information on an ECCblock-by-ECC block basis.
 10. An information recording method accordingto claim 6, wherein the recording region allocation step comprises anallowable skip number calculation step for calculating an allowable skipnumber, the allowable skip number representing a maximum number of skipsthat can be made while allowing the data to be entirely recorded withinthe recording region allocated during the recording region allocationstep, wherein the skip recording step comprises a skip recordinginstructing step for requesting recording to be begun, while designatingthe calculated allowable skip number and location information of therecording region allocated during the recording region allocation step,wherein the file management information generation step comprises arecording location information transfer step for transferring recordinglocation information representing a location of a portion of therecording region in which the data was recorded without skipping duringthe skip recording step, and wherein the file management informationgeneration step generates file management information based on therecording location information which was transferred during therecording location information transfer step.
 11. An informationrecording method according to claim 6, wherein the skip recording stepcomprises: a recording region designation step for designating therecording region allocated during the recording region allocation step,and a split recording step for recording the data in the recordingregion in a split manner, wherein the file management informationgeneration step comprises a recording location information transfer stepfor transferring recording location information representing a locationof a portion of the recording region in which the data was recordedwithout skipping during the skip recording step, and wherein the filemanagement information generation step generates file managementinformation based on the recording location information which wastransferred during the recording location information transfer step. 12.An information recording method according to claim 6, wherein the skiprecording step comprises: a recording region designation step fordesignating the recording region allocated during the recording regionallocation step, and a split recording step for recording the data inthe recording region in a split manner, and a recording statusconfirmation step for obtaining location information and a recordingstatus as associated with progress of the recording.
 13. An informationrecording method for recording the data on an information recordingmedium for recording and reproducing data thereon on a sector-by-sectorbasis, comprising ECC blocks as units for performing an error correctionprocess, each ECC block comprising a plurality of sectors, wherein atleast one sector having data recorded therein is managed as an extent,and at least one extent is managed as a file, at least one file beingmanaged by using a file structure, the method comprising: a recordingregion allocation step for allocating a recording region for recordingthe data; a skip recording step for recording the data in the recordingregion allocated during the recording region allocation step whileskipping a defective region in the recording region allocated during therecording region allocation step, the defective region being detected asdefective during a recording operation; and a file managementinformation generation step for registering a portion of the recordingregion in which the data was recorded without skipping, as an extent infile management information, registering the portion as a used region inunused space management information, and nevertheless registering theskipped defective region as an unused region in the unused spacemanagement information so as to be identified in the unused spacemanagement information as unallocated during a subsequent recordingoperation, wherein, in a case where an end of an extent falls in themiddle of one of the ECC blocks, a remaining portion of the one ECCblock is registered as a padding extent in the file managementinformation, thereby indicating that the remaining portion of the oneECC block is an allocated but unused portion of the at least one file.14. An information recording method for recording the data on aninformation recording medium for recording and reproducing data thereonon a sector-by-sector basis, wherein at least one sector having datarecorded therein is managed as an extent, and at least one extent ismanaged as a file, at least one file being managed by using a filestructure, the method comprising: a recording region allocation step forallocating a recording region for recording the data; a skip recordingstep for recording the data in the recording region allocated during therecording region allocation step while skipping a defective region; inthe recording region allocated during the recording region allocationstep, the defective region being detected as defective during arecording operation; and a file management information generation stepfor registering a portion of the recording region in which the data wasrecorded without skipping, as an extent in file management information,registering the portion as a used region in unused space managementinformation, and nevertheless registering the skipped defective regionas an unused region in the unused space management information so as tobe identified in the unused space management information as unallocatedduring a subsequent recording operation, wherein, the file managementinformation generation step comprises an AV file attribute registrationstep for, if the recorded file is an AV file containing at least one ofvideo information and audio information, registering file attributeinformation for identifying the AV file in the file managementinformation.
 15. A disk recording drive for recording data on a disk forrecording and reproducing data on a sector-by-sector basis, the diskrecording drive comprising: an instruction processing section forprocessing processing requests; and a disk recording control section forcontrolling a recording process for the disk in accordance with arequest from the instruction processing section, wherein the instructionprocessing section comprises: a skip recording instruction processingsection for receiving a skip recording instruction and requesting thedisk recording control section to perform recording, the skip recordinginstruction comprising a recording start location, a recording length,and an allowable skip number; and a recording location requestinginstruction processing section for receiving recording locationinformation of the recorded data from the disk recording control sectionand reporting the recording location information, and wherein the diskrecording control section comprises: a recording control informationmemory for storing recording control information upon receiving the skiprecording instruction, the recording control information including therecording start location, the recording length, and the allowable skipnumber; a defective region detection section for detecting a defectiveregion on the disk during a recording operation; a skip recordingcontrol section for beginning a recording operation in accordance withthe recording control information stored in the recording controlinformation memory, wherein, in a case where a defective region isdetected by the defective region detection section during the recordingoperation, the skip recording control section i) stops recording in thedefective region and records a remainder of the data in a subsequentregion, the remainder of the data including the data which wouldotherwise have been recorded in the defective region, if the number ofdefective regions is equal to or smaller than the allowable skip number,or ii) terminates the recording operation and reports an error to theskip recording instruction processing section, if the number ofdefective regions is larger than the allowable skip number; and adefective region recording location storing memory for storing locationinformation of the defective region skipped by the skip recordingcontrol section.
 16. A disk recording drive according to claim 15,wherein the disk recording control section further comprises a dataverification section for reading and checking the data from a recordedregion, and wherein the defective region comprises a region which isdetermined by the data verification section as containing an error. 17.A disk recording drive according to claim 15, wherein the skip recordingcontrol section determines the defective region on an ECC block-by-ECCblock basis, in a case where the disk comprises ECC blocks as units forperforming an error correction process, each ECC block comprising aplurality of sectors.
 18. A disk recording drive for recording data on adisk for recording and reproducing data on a sector-by-sector basis, thedisk recording drive comprising: an instruction processing section forprocessing processing requests; and a disk recording control section forcontrolling a recording process for the disk in accordance with arequest from the instruction processing section, wherein the instructionprocessing section comprises: a recording region designation instructionprocessing section for processing a recording region designationinstruction which designates location information of a recordableregion; a split recording instruction processing section for processinga split recording instruction which instructs transferring data to berecorded in a recording region designated by the recording regiondesignation instruction, the data being transferred in a split manner;and a recording location requesting instruction processing section forreporting recording location information of the recorded data, andwherein the disk recording control section comprises: a recordingcontrol information memory for storing location information of therecording region designated by the recording region designationinstruction, as recording control information; a defective regiondetection section for detecting a defective region on the disk during arecording operation; a skip recording control section for beginning arecording operation in accordance with the recording control informationstored in the recording control information memory, wherein, in a casewhere a defective region is detected by the defective region detectionsection during the recording operation, the skip recording controlsection i) stops recording in the defective region and records aremainder of the data in a subsequent region, the remainder of the dataincluding the data which would otherwise have been recorded in thedefective region, if the recording location information indicates alocation within the recording region as stored in the recording controlinformation memory, or ii) terminates the recording operation andreports an error to the split recording instruction processing section,if the recording location information indicates a location past therecording region as stored in the recording control information memory;and a defective region recording location storing memory for storinglocation information of the defective region skipped by the skiprecording control section.
 19. A disk recording drive according to claim18, wherein the disk recording control section further comprises a dataverification section for reading and checking the data from a recordedregion, and wherein the defective region comprises a region which isdetermined by the data verification section as containing an error. 20.A disk recording drive according to claim 18, wherein the skip recordingcontrol section determines an ECC block including the defective regionas a defective region, in a case where the disk comprises ECC blocks asunits for performing an error correction process, each ECC blockcomprising a plurality of sectors.
 21. A disk recording drive accordingto claim 18, wherein the instruction processing section furthercomprises a recording status reporting instruction processing sectionfor receiving a recording status reporting instruction and reporting acurrent recording location and a current recording status.
 22. A datarecording method for recording data on a disk for recording andreproducing data on a sector-by-sector basis, the data recording methodcomprising: an instruction processing step for processing processingrequests; and a disk recording control step for controlling a recordingprocess for the disk, wherein the instruction processing step comprises:a recording region designation instruction processing step forprocessing a recording region designation instruction which designateslocation information of a recordable region; a split recordinginstruction processing step for processing a split recording instructionwhich instructs transferring data to be recorded in a recording regiondesignated by the recording region designation instruction, the databeing transferred in a split manner; and a recording location requestinginstruction processing step for reporting recording location informationof the recorded data, and wherein the disk recording control stepcomprises: a recording control information storing step for storinglocation information of the recording region designated during therecording region designation step as recording control information; adefective region detection step for detecting a defective region on thedisk during a recording operation; a skip recording control step forbeginning a recording operation in accordance with the recording controlinformation stored during the recording control information storingstep, wherein, in a case where a defective region is detected by thedefective region detection step during the recording operation, the skiprecording control step i) stops recording in the defective region andrecords a remainder of the data in a subsequent region, the remainder ofthe data including the data which would otherwise have been recorded inthe defective region, if the recording location information indicates alocation within the recording region as stored during the recordingcontrol information storing step, or ii) terminates the recordingoperation and reports an error to the split recording instructionprocessing step, if the recording location information indicates alocation past the recording region as stored during the recordingcontrol information storing step; and a defective region recordinglocation storing step for storing location information of the defectiveregion skipped by the skip recording control step.
 23. A data recordingmethod according to claim 22, wherein the disk recording control stepfurther comprises a data verification step for reading and checking thedata from a recorded region, and wherein the defective region comprisesa region which is determined by the data verification step as containingan error.
 24. A data recording method according to claim 22, wherein theskip recording control step determines an ECC block including thedefective region as a defective region, in a case where the diskcomprises ECC blocks as units for performing an error correctionprocess, each ECC block comprising a plurality of sectors.
 25. A datarecording method according to claim 22, wherein the instructionprocessing step further comprises a recording status reportinginstruction processing step for receiving a recording status reportinginstruction and reporting a current recording location and a currentrecording status.
 26. An information recording system comprising anupper control apparatus and the disk recording drive according to claim15, wherein the upper control apparatus comprises: an instructionissuing section for issuing an instruction to the disk recording drive,a recording region allocation section for allocating a recording regionfor recording the data; and a file management information generationsection for generating file management information for managing the atleast one file recorded on the disk, wherein the instruction issuingsection comprises: a skip recording instruction issuing section forissuing a skip recording instruction for recording the data in therecording region allocated by the recording region allocation sectionwhile skipping a defective region in the recording region allocated bythe recording region allocation section; and a recording locationrequesting instruction issuing section for issuing a recording locationrequesting instruction for requesting transfer of recording locationinformation of a recorded region, and wherein the file managementinformation generation section generates file management informationbased on the recording location information received by the recordinglocation requesting instruction issuing section from the disk recordingdrive.
 27. An information recording system according to claim 24,wherein, if the recorded file is an AV file containing at least one ofvideo information and audio information, the file management informationgeneration section registers information for identifying the AV file infile attribute information.
 28. An information recording systemaccording to claim 26, wherein the file management informationgeneration section registers a defective region detected during therecording operation as an unused region in unused space managementinformation, the unused space management information being comprised inthe file management information.
 29. An information recording systemcomprising an upper control apparatus and the disk recording driveaccording to claim 18, wherein the upper control apparatus comprises: aninstruction issuing section for issuing an instruction to the diskrecording drive, a recording region allocation section for allocating arecording region for recording the data; and a file managementinformation generation section for generating file managementinformation for managing the at least one file recorded on the disk,wherein the instruction issuing section comprises: a recording regiondesignation instruction issuing section for issuing a recording regiondesignation instruction which, prior to a recording operation to thedisks designates a recording region on the disk as allocated by therecording region, allocation section; a split recording instructionissuing section for issuing a split recording instruction fortransferring data to be recorded in the recording region designated bythe recording region designation instruction issuing section, the databeing transferred in a split manner, and for requesting the diskrecording drive to record the transferred data; and a recording locationrequesting instruction issuing section for issuing a recording locationrequesting instruction for requesting reporting of recording locationinformation of the region recorded by the disk recording drive, whereinthe file management information generation section generates filemanagement information based on the recording location informationreceived by the recording location requesting instruction issuingsection from the disk recording drive.
 30. An information recordingsystem according to claim 29, wherein, if the recorded file is an AVfile containing at least one of video information and audio information,the file management information generation section registers informationfor identifying the AV file in file attribute information.
 31. Aninformation recording system according to claim 23, wherein the filemanagement information generation section registers a defective regiondetected during the recording operation as an unused region in unusedspace management information, the unused space management informationbeing comprised in the file management information.
 32. A diskreproduction drive for reproducing data from an information recordingmedium for recording and reproducing data on a sector-by-sector basis,the recorded data being managed as at least one file by using a filestructure, the disk reproduction drive comprising: an instructionprocessing section for receiving and processing processing requests, anda reproduction control section for continuously reading the data fromthe disk and transferring the read data, wherein the instructionprocessing section comprises: a reproduction region setting instructionprocessing section for, prior to a reproduction operation, processing areproduction region setting instruction which sets location informationof at least one reproduction region; and a read data transferinstruction processing section for processing a read data transferinstruction which requests transfer of read data, and wherein thereproduction control section comprises: a read region informationstoring memory for storing location information of the at least one readregion received by the reproduction region setting instructionprocessing section; a read data storing memory for temporarily storingread data; and a continuous read-ahead processing section for performinga read-ahead process and, even if an error occurs during the readoperation, continuing with a read operation for a subsequent regionwithout stopping the read-ahead operation, the read-ahead processcomprising previously reading the data from the disk and storing theread data in the read data storing memory, wherein, upon receiving theread data transfer instruction, the read data transfer instructionprocessing section transfers the read data stored in the read datastoring memory.
 33. An information reproduction system for reproducingdata from an information recording medium for recording and reproducingdata on a sector-by-sector basis, the recorded data being managed as atleast one file by using a file structure, the information reproductionsystem comprising an upper control apparatus and the disk reproductiondrive according to claim 32, wherein the upper control apparatuscomprises: a file management information interpretation section forinterpreting the file management information to obtain locationinformation and attribute information of the at least one file; and aninstruction issuing section for issuing an instruction for requestingprocesses to the disk recording drive, wherein the instruction issuingsection comprises: a reproduction region setting instruction issuingsection for issuing a reproduction region setting instruction based onthe recording location information of the at least one file asdetermined by the file management information interpretation section,and a read data transfer instruction issuing section for issuing a readdata transfer instruction for requesting transfer of read data from theregion as designated by the reproduction region setting instructionissuing section, and for receiving the read data.